Southern Africa-Indian Ocean

division

ADULT SABBATH SCHOOL BIBLE STUDY GUIDE

THE CHRISTIAN LIFE

SEVENTH-DAY

ADVENTIST CHURCH

April

■

May

■

June 2009

MAURITIUS

L. Kivu

L. Malawi

L. Tanganyika

Lake

Victoria

Lake Albert

Lake Kariba

Lake

Mweru

Congo R.

Kas ai R.

Lim p op o R.

Orange R.

U bangi R

Vaal R.

Z am bez i R.

ATLANTIC

OCEAN

INDIAN

OCEAN

Maseru

Windhoek

Luanda

Namibe

Lusaka

Bloemfontein

Mbabane

Johannesburg

Cape Town

Pretoria

Kitwe

Harare

Lilongwe

Beira

Gaborone

Kasama

Antananarivo

NAMIBIA

ANGOLA

BOTSWANA

ZAMBIA

MALAWI

ZIMBABWE

MOZAMBIQ UE

SOUTH AFRICA

LESOTHO

SWAZILAND

MADAGASCAR

SEYCHELLES

COMOROS

REUNION

MAURITIUS

SAO TOME

& PRINCIPE

KERGUELEN

ISLANDS

*EAQ090401*

Where legally possible, offerings will go to these projects; otherwise special arrangement will be made with the

General Conference for distribution of funds based on the laws of the countries where these offerings are collected.

ADULT

SABBATH SCHOOL

BIBLE STUDY GUIDE

April

■

May

■

June 2009

Mission Projects

Our Thirteenth Sabbath Offering this quarter will help the

Southern Africa-Indian Ocean Division with these projects:

● Replace Cuale and Quicuco Primary Schools, which were

damaged or destroyed during the 30-year civil war in Angola.

● Help build a classroom and administration block at newly

established Bongo University.

● Build a library for newly established Zambia Adventist

University.

For more information, visit www.adventistmission.org

●

Map not drawn to scale

●

hristian

Life

The

hristian

Life

The

Unions Churches Members Population

Angola Union Mission 948 313,831 16,448,000

Botswana Union Mission 86 27,702 1,753,000

Indian Ocean Union Mission 471 104,141 21,307,000

Malawi Union Mission 1,212 272,642 13,070,000

Mozambique Union Mission 976 221,116 20,359,000

Southern Africa Union Conference 886 106,066 52,878,000

Zambia Union Mission 1,704 546,367 11,477,000

Zimbabwe Union Conference 959 522,426 13,349,000

Total* 7,242 2,114,291 150,641,000

●

*Totals from Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook 2008

Contents

1 Love—March 28–April 3 ———————————————————6

2 Faith—April 4–10 —————————————————————14

3 Hope—April 11–17 —————————————————————22

4 Life—April 18–24 —————————————————————30

5 Revelation—April 25–May 1—————————————————38

6 Sin—May 2–8 ———————————————————————46

7 Grace—May 9–15 —————————————————————56

8 Rest—May 16–22——————————————————————64

9 Heaven—May 23–29 ————————————————————72

10 Discipleship—May 30–June 5 ————————————————80

11 Stewardship—June 6–12 ——————————————————88

12 Community—June 13–19 ——————————————————96

13 Mission—June 20–26 ———————————————————104

Editorial Assistant

Tresa Beard

Pacific Press

Coordinator

Paul A. Hey

Art Director and Illustrator

Lars Justinen

Concept Design

Dever Designs

Editorial Office 12501 Old Columbia Pike, Silver Spring, MD 20904

Come visit us at our Web site: http://www.absg.adventist.org

Principal Contributor

Reinder Bruinsma

Editor

Clifford R. Goldstein

Associate Editor

Soraya Homayouni

Publication Manager

Lea Alexander Greve

The Adult Sabbath School Bible Study Guide is prepared by the Office of the Adult Bible

Study Guide of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. The preparation of the

guides is under the general direction of a worldwide Sabbath School Manuscript Evaluation

Committee, whose members serve as consulting editors. The published guide reflects the

input of the committee and thus does not solely or necessarily represent the intent of the

author(s).

ne of the great eighteenth-to nineteenth-century thinkers,

Pierre Laplace, wrote a book about the motion of the planets.

He called it Celestial Mechanics, and he presented a copy of

the book, in person, to E

mperor Napoleon. Someone had told

Napoleon beforehand that the book never mentioned God. The

emperor took the book and said, “Mr. Laplace, they tell me you have

written this large book on the system of the universe, and have never

even mentioned its Creator.” Laplace, unflinchingly, responded, “I

have no need of that hypothesis.”

This story is a metaphor for what’s been known as “the modern era,”

an era in which logic, reason, and science have formed the foundation

of all truth. According to this view, all reality can be reduced to for-

mulas, to laws, and to scientific predictions. If it can’t be explained

through logic, reason, and science, it

isn’t real.

In recent years there’s been a back-

lash against this thinking. People don’t

believe, and rightly so, that all reality

can be explained in cold rationality

alone. There’s something about us that

no formula, no test tube, and no scientific law ever could capture.

This backlash has spilled over into all realms of life, including reli-

gion; however, as with most reactions, it has in some cases gone too

far, even to the point of pushing aside or ignoring the concept of doc-

trinal truth. What’s important, we’re told, isn’t teachings or doctrine

but experience. What does your faith do for you now—that’s what

matters. Instead of saying, “Here are compelling reasons to believe in

Jesus Christ and His promise of salvation,” the trend (again, a back-

lash) is to say, “Our community of faith invites you to join us in our

venture of trust and commitment.”

Now, this doesn’t have to be all bad. Did not Jesus say that His truth

would have concrete and practical results in our lives (J

ohn 8:32) ? Of

alking the

Experience never should

take away from the

importance of correct

biblical teaching.

course. Truth is not just knowledge of doctrines and texts but some-

thing that influences the believer on a personal level. Truth affects the

spiritual life and impacts how a person will relate to the challenges of

daily living. There is a practical, life-changing aspect of our religion

that never should be denied or denigrated. At the same time, the role

of experience never should take away from the importance of correct

biblical teachings.

This quarter we want to look at both aspects of our faith: doctrine

and experience. In our study during this quarter we will focus on 13

essential themes of the Christian faith, 13 essential teachings. Each

week’s lesson will attempt to maintain a careful balance between a cor-

rect biblical understanding of these various elements of our faith and

how they impact our daily experience. It’s our hope that at the end of

the quarter you not only will understand these themes better but also

have been enriched as far as your Christian experience is concerned.

Each lesson is not just about truth but about “the truth as it is in

Jesus.”

After all, He is the One who is the Alpha and Omega of our faith.

There may be 13 different themes, but they will have one focus: the

One in whom “we live, and move, and have our being” (Acts 17:28).

einder Bruinsma, born in the Netherlands, has served in various

offices in his long career in the church. Bruinsma is the author of almost

twenty books, some of which have been translated into a number of lan-

guages, and was president of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the

Netherlands when he wrote this Bible study guide.

alk

Imagine living in a war zone. Imagine a child walking to school and ﬁnding the

school in ruins—burned, pillaged, deserted. Imagine knowing that his only hope

for an education lies in the ashes under his feet.

The children of Angola know the feeling. For 35 years their country was

wracked by civil war, war that left lives and buildings in ruins. But in 2002

the war ended. The people now live in freedom. But many of the Adventist

schools still lie in ruins. Hope for an education must wait a while longer.

I want to help these children get the education they deserve. I want to see

them learning to read and write and praise God. I’m glad that this quarter

part of our Thirteenth Sabbath Offering will help rebuild two Adventist

primary schools and will help the Adventist university in central Angola. I’ve

seen the face of despair. And I’ve seen the face of hope. For me it’s personal.

L ESSON

*March 28–April 3

Love

SABBATH AFTERNOON

Read for This Week’s Study:

Isaiah 53, Matt. 22:37–39,

1 Corinthians 13, 1 John 3, 1 John 4.

Memory Text:

“And now these three remain: faith, hope and

love. But the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:13, NIV).

t is only fitting that a study guide dealing with key concepts of the

Christian faith should start with the topic of love. The apostle Paul

points out that however important faith and hope and other ele-

ments of Christianity are, it all starts with love. Without love, we are,

as he said, “nothing” (1 Cor. 13:2).

Some five centuries before Christ was born, the Greek philosopher

Sophocles said, “One word frees us of all the weight and pain of life.

That word is love.” True as these words are, this Greek sage still was

ignorant about the depth of love that was to be proclaimed and mod-

eled by our Savior.

God is love. Whatever else God is, and whatever He has done, is

doing, and will do—everything is a manifestation of His love. This love

is as comforting as it is difficult to comprehend. God’s love far exceeds

what human beings usually label as love, which is sometimes a mere

shallow feeling or temporary infatuation that’s often mixed with self-

ishness and greed. God does not just have love or show love. He is love.

The Week at a Glance:

God’s love for humanity has been

revealed in numerous ways, the greatest being the cross. As fol-

lowers of Jesus, we respond to His love by loving others as Christ

loves us.

* Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, April 4.

SUNDAY

March 29

Love—the Fabric of Life

We need to eat and drink in order to stay alive. Without liquid to

drink or food to eat, we come to an end soon. But in order to live in

any real sense of the word, we also need love. Life without love is a

subhuman kind of existence. There is a built-in need in us to receive

love. We need the love of parents. We need the love of family and

friends. We need to be part of a loving community. But just as much

as we need to receive love, we also need to give love. We are not truly

human if we cannot love. But let’s be clear: True love does not begin

with us. The capacity for love is created in us by our Creator. (See

Gen. 1:26 and John 3:16.)

How

all-important is love in the life of the follower of Christ? Matt.

22:37–39, 1 Cor. 13:1–3, 1 John 3:14.

____________________________________________________________________

God’s love always precedes our love. Whatever else we say about

love, this point is crucial. True “love is not an impulse, but a divine

principle, a permanent power. The unconsecrated heart cannot origi-

nate or produce it. Only in the heart where Jesus reigns is it found.

‘We love Him, because He first loved us’ [1 John 4:19]. In the heart

renewed by divine grace, love is the ruling principle of action.”

—Ellen G. White, The Acts of the Apostles, p. 551.

The famous British author C. S. Lewis uses the terms “Gift-love”

and “Need-love” to differentiate between God’s love and human forms

of love. While God wants our love more than anything else, He does

not need our love in the same way in which we need love from Him

and from fellow human beings. “We [must] begin at the real begin-

ning, with love as the Divine energy. This primal love is Gift-love. In

God there is no hunger that needs to be filled, only plenteousness that

desires to give.”—C. S. Lewis, The Four Loves (London: HarperCollins,

1998), p. 121. Our human love needs to be transformed by divine love,

so that—while we will continue to yearn for love from others—we

will be able to give love in a truly Christlike manner.

From your own experience, what is the difference between

human love and God’s love? What kind of human love best

exemplifies God’s love? How can we better manifest God’s love

in our own lives?

MONDAY

March 30

The Old Testament God—a God of

Love

It is often said that God’s love is clearly manifested only in the New

Testament, while the “Old Testament God” is a God of justice and

wrath. But careful study of the entire Bible shows that God does not

have such a split personality. Though God’s love was manifested in the

fullest measure in Christ (as portrayed in the New Testament), the God

of Old Testament times is just as much a God of supreme love. God

does not change (James 1:17). He does not gradually evolve from a

God of wrath or a God of justice into a God of love. God’s love is eter-

nal. The words to His Old Testament people apply to all times: “ ‘I

have loved you with an everlasting love’ ” (Jer. 31:3, NIV).

Take

a look at a few important evidences of God’s love in Old Testament

times as listed below and add a few other clear evidences of His

love found elsewhere in the Old Testament.

• God’s love in creation (Gen. 1:26–31, 2:21–25).

_______________________________________________________

• Providing a solution for the sin problem (Gen. 3:15, 22:8, Isaiah

53).

_______________________________________________________

• The gift of the Sabbath (Exod. 31:12–17).

_______________________________________________________

• The continuous gift of prophecy (Amos 3:7).

_______________________________________________________

There are stories and statements in the Old Testament that are, at least

on the surface, difficult to understand. It is true that we read about blood-

shed and war. But never forget that God is consistently portrayed as the

covenant God who draws people to Himself and does not forsake them,

in spite of the fact that they turn their backs on Him time and again.

What do you answer when confronted with questions about war

and bloodshed in the Old Testament? How do you reconcile the

divine commands to eliminate entire nations (for instance,

Israel taking possession of the land of Canaan) with the concept

of a God of love?

TUESDAY

March 31

The New Testament God—a God of

Love

Why did Jesus Christ come to the world? Why did He have to suf-

fer, and was it necessary for Him to die on a cross? And why will He

come again and restore this world to its original unblemished condi-

tion? Was there no other way? And if not, why does it take so long

before the sin problem is fully dealt with? We are in no position to

answer these questions. In His infinite wisdom God devised a plan to

deal with the predicament of sin in the best possible way. Being a holy

God, He could not overlook the rebellion against His perfect law;

being love, He could not stand back and let His creatures perish with-

out doing His utmost to save them.

“God’s holiness is his majestic purity that cannot tolerate moral evil.

God’s love is his outgoing, tenderhearted embrace of the sinner. God’s

holiness is his separateness from what is unclean and profane. God’s

love is his willingness to identify with those who are unclean in order to

help them. . . . [But] God’s wrath is provisional whereas his love is eter-

nal.”—Donald G. Bloesch, God the Almighty: Power, Wisdom, Holiness,

Love (Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 1995), pp. 140–143.

What

do the following texts tell us about the New Testament message

of God’s love?

• God’s gift of His Son (John 3:16)

• The Son’s giving of Himself (Phil. 2:5–8)

• The gift of the Holy Spirit (John 14:15–18, Acts 2:1–4)

• The availability of spiritual gifts (Eph. 4:11–13)

• The certainty of salvation (1 John 3:1–3)

• An eternal future in an environment of love (2 Peter 3:13)

How

would you summarize the New Testament message about the

love of God?

____________________________________________________________________

How do the three angels’ messages of Revelation 14:6–12 fit in

this overall New Testament theme of divine love? Ellen White

speaks about the message of the third angel as the good news of

justification by faith “in verity.” How does that all fit in with the

theme of God’s love for humanity?

WEDNESDAY

April 1

A Response of Love

The tragic reality of this world is one of self-love, blind ambition,

hatred, competition, corruption, and war. As long as the citizens of

this world let themselves, knowingly or unknowingly, be guided by the

principles of the prince of darkness, love will have no chance to blos-

som. Mother Teresa once said, “If you judge people, you have no time

to love them.”

If we truly have been converted and become disciples of the Lord,

the principle of love will reign in our lives. Whatever our weaknesses,

we will steadily grow in our love for God and for our fellow human

beings. In a very real sense conversion is reorientation—a shift away

from the love of self to the love for God and to the love of others.

What

underlying principle should we discern as we study the com-

mandments that God has given us? Has this principle been oper-

ating differently since Christ came to this world? Deut. 6:5, 6;

Matt. 22:37–40.

If we truly have been changed by Jesus Christ, His love will char-

acterize our dealings with other people. Though we may not like some

people, we are called to love everyone, even our greatest enemy. This

not only will benefit the people we associate with but will also prove

an enormous blessing for ourselves. Give love and unconditional

acceptance to those you encounter and notice what happens.

How

should love permeate what we say and do? Matt. 5:44, 25:31–46,

1 Pet. 1:22.

“If church members will put away all self-worship, and will receive

in their hearts the love for God and for one another that filled Christ’s

heart, our heavenly Father will constantly manifest His power through

them. Let His people be drawn together with the cords of divine love.

Then the world will recognize the miracle-working power of God, and

will acknowledge that He is the Strength and the Helper of His

commandment-keeping people.”—Ellen G. White Comments, The

SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 7, p. 940.

Are you naturally loving or naturally selfish and self-centered?

What practical steps can you take to move away from self and

manifest love toward others?

THURSDAY

April 2

Love Personified

Jesus Christ is our ultimate Role Model. If we wonder what our love

should be like, we need to look only at our Savior. In Him we see the

perfect example. Humanly speaking, Christ had every reason to dis-

like or even hate a lot of people. The spiritual leaders were so envious

of His success that they constantly harassed Him and eventually

decided to eliminate Him. Why should He have loved these people?

His own family was at times less than supportive. His disciples often

fought among themselves and were absent when their presence would

have counted most. How could He love them at those moments when

they totally forsook Him?

Besides all this, Jesus also manifested His love in particular toward

those who would not get much positive attention from the spiritual

leaders of His day: women (including prostitutes), those who suffered

from leprosy, people from Samaria, members of the occupying force,

and tax gatherers.

Take a careful look at some concrete examples of Jesus showing

unselfish love, in circumstances in which most people would have

found it difficult to do so.

1. Luke 17:12–19

2. John 13:1–17

3. John 19:25–27

How

should the manifestation of divine love in the ministry of Jesus

impact our discipleship? 2 Cor. 5:14, Phil. 2:2.

The love of Christ compels us, the apostle Paul says (2 Cor. 5:14).

The English translation is somewhat ambiguous, for the original

Greek construction may be translated as the love that comes from

Christ, as well as the love that we have for Christ. Both meanings are

grammatically justified and also are theologically correct. When we

grasp something of the magnitude of Christ’s love, it will create a lov-

ing response, and this will give us the intense desire to share that love

with others.

Jesus also loved those who were despised by most other people

and were generally considered rather unlovable. He went out of

His way to show them His love. How do I show my love to the

homeless, to people who live at the fringes of society, and to those

who do not in any way represent the values that I treasure?

FRIDAY

April 3

Further Study:

Read Ellen G. White, “God’s Love for Man,”

pp. 9–16, in Steps to Christ. Also read “Calvary,” pp. 741–757 and

“ ‘It Is Finished,’ ” pp. 758–768, in The Desire of Ages, which deal

with the final moments of Christ’s earthly life. The book The Four

Loves, by C. S. Lewis, is an inspiring essay on the various kinds of

human and divine love.

Discussion Questions:

● One cannot escape the “why” question: If God is love, why is

there so much suffering? It is not only the scale of suffering that

causes people to question God’s love but also the fact that so

much appears to affect innocent people, and so much appears

utterly senseless. How do we, as Seventh-day Adventist

Christians, deal with this reality? How does our understanding

of the great controversy help us understand this difficult topic?

● How can one love an abusing parent, a serial killer, or a totally

selfish person? How did Jesus love those who were totally unlov-

able?

● How can one continue loving if there is no response to that

love? Again, how did Jesus continue to love those who would

never love Him back?

● Who are the outcasts, the despised, and the reviled in your own

society? What kind of outreach and ministry does your church

have for those people? What would it take to get yourself and

your church involved in such a work?

● In a real sense, true love demands a death to self, a willingness

to put self aside for the good of others. What choices do we have

to make in order to experience that death ourselves?

● Besides the Cross, what are other ways that we can see God’s

love for humanity?

Summary: God is love. This characteristic is the basis for everything God

is and does. This loving God is already revealed in the Old Testament,

but His love is seen in its ultimate form in the gift of His Son, Jesus

Christ, for our salvation. This divine love finds a response in the love

of the Christian. If we profess to be disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ,

our life will be marked by unconditional love toward our Maker and

unselfish love for others.

INSIDE

Mad Man Goes to Church

by CHARLOTTE ISHKANIAN

Mekonin lived in a farming village in Ethiopia. Many people in this vil-

lage didn’t like Adventists, and some even wanted to destroy the local

Adventist church.

One day people noticed that Mekonin was behaving erratically. He became

angry easily and even tried to kill his wife. Fortunately, she and their children

fled to her parents’ home. As Mekonin’s behavior became more demonic, the

neighbors feared for their own safety. They chained him to a pillar in his home

and stayed a safe distance away.

Then someone mentioned that when the Adventists pray for people, they’re

healed. The next Sabbath morning several strong men bound Mekonin in

chains and led him to the Adventist church. The men sat down on a bench near

the back surrounding Mekonin, ready to subdue him if he became aggressive.

The visitors sat quietly through Sabbath School and church. Then the pastor,

deacons, and church elders gathered around Mekonin and prayed for him.

“Why don’t you throw water on him?” one of the neighbors asked. The pas-

tor explained that the power to heal Mekonin was in Christ, not in the water.

The pastor asked the men to bring Mekonin back the next day for prayer.

On Sunday the neighbors returned to the Adventist church with Mekonin,

but this time he came without the chains. About 60 people came to pray for

Mekonin or to watch what happened.

The following Sabbath, Mekonin visited the Adventist church again. He

walked with some Adventist members and was not bound by chains. Mekonin

took part in the worship service. The pastor knew of another Adventist church

nearer to Mekonin’s home and asked the local elders to go to Mekonin’s home

and pray with him. Other Adventist groups learned about Mekonin’s condition

and joined in praying for him. Within two weeks Mekonin was healed of the

demons who had possessed him.

Mekonin’s wife learned that her husband had been healed; she and her chil-

dren returned home.

Mekonin and his wife joined the Adventist church, along with neighbors

who had once wanted to destroy the church but had seen God heal Mekonin

in answer to the believers’ prayers. Today six Adventist churches stand in the

area near Mekonin’s home, testimonies of God’s goodness and power to save.

Your mission offerings help spread the gospel in farming villages and large

cities around the world so that people chained by darkness can be freed by

Jesus, the Light of the World.

CHARLOTTE ISHKANIAN is editor of Mission.

Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission.

Web site: www.adventistmission.org

tor

L ESSON

*April 4–10

Faith

SABBATH AFTERNOON

Read for This Week’s Study:

Eph. 6:10–18; Hebrews 11;

James 2:18, 19; 1 Pet. 1:3–8.

Memory Text:

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through

faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by

works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8, 9, NIV).

aith is not to be confused with rational conviction. Faith in the

biblical sense is not based primarily on our reason (even though

it is not unreasonable or irrational!); nor is it based on our emo-

tions (though emotions do play a role). Faith is a deep-rooted assur-

ance that affects the entire person. Faith is a principle that governs the

life. Faith is the means by which we reach out and grab hold of the

promises of a God we can’t see yet we know is there.

Hebrews 11:1 speaks about the “substance” of our faith. William G.

Johnsson, an expert on Hebrews, suggests that the best translation is,

“Faith is the title deed to what we hope for, the certainty of what we

do not see.”—Hebrews, The Abundant Life Bible Amplifier (Boise,

Idaho: Pacific Press

Publishing Association, 1994), p. 204.

The Week at a Glance:

Faith is the guiding principle in

the life of a Christian. It’s how we are to live and to relate to God

and to others. However important an intellectual assent to doc-

trines is, faith is so much more than just that. This week we’ll look

at how much more.

* Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, April 11.

SUNDAY

April 5

Faith—a Gift From God

What is faith?

A simple definition could read something like this: “Faith is a con-

fident and obedient trust in the reality, power, and love of God as

revealed in His acts and in His promises to us.”

What a wonderful gift to have in a terribly fallen and broken world

such as ours. No wonder many believe that faith is the most wonder-

ful of all gifts humans could have.

Now, the question is, Have you ever tried to discover where your

faith originated? Why is it that you have faith in God and in others you

know don’t? Was it your upbringing? Did you have believing parents?

Have you always attended church? Did your study of the Bible, and

your reading of books about the Bible, convince you that there is a

God who loves you? Did you find satisfying philosophical arguments

that prepared you for the “leap” of faith? In the final analysis, faith is

a miracle, a gift from God.

How

does the apostle Paul underline the gift-character of faith? Eph.

2:8.

____________________________________________________________________

One thing is sure: Just as we cannot be fully human without love, we

cannot be what we are intended to be without faith. “ ‘Without faith it is

impossible to please God.’ . . . Note that Hebrews does not teach that

without faith it is difficult to please God, or that without faith it will take

a long time to satisfy Him. To the contrary, it claims that it is impossible.

In short, faith has no substitute. It is by faith that God’s heroes lived in

the past, and it is by faith that His people must live today.”—George R.

Knight, Exploring Hebrews: A Devotional Commentary (Hagerstown,

Md.: Review and Herald

Publishing Association, 2003), p. 198.

How

can we position ourselves in a way that prepares us for the gift

of faith? That is, what changes can we make in our lives to make

us more receptive to that gift? Rom. 10:17; see also Heb. 11:6.

____________________________________________________________________

Sometimes you hear people say that they wish they had faith.

What would you advise such people? What kind of changes

might they need to make in order to be more receptive to receiv-

ing the gift? See Mark 9:24.

MONDAY

April 6

The Basis of Our Faith

A famous English hymn that has been translated in countless lan-

guages reminds us, “My hope is built on nothing less / Than Jesus’

blood and righteousness” (The Seventh-day Adventist Hymnal, no.

522). It is impor

tant that we never forget this truth. Jesus Christ is the

ultimate foundation and source of our faith. But even though the gift

of faith is a mystery that remains beyond our comprehension, we have

been given some insights into how faith is awakened and strength-

ened. Some men and women in Bible times had a sudden experience

that started them on the journey of faith. Paul is probably the most

prominent example. Others tell of a much more gradual awareness of

God’s leading in their life, which brought focus and direction in their

pilgrimage of faith. No doubt, experience is an essential and powerful

component of our spiritual life. But faith also must have content, and

the revelation provided in the Scriptures plays the major role in estab-

lishing us in our faith.

What

role do the Scriptures play in the faith experience of the

believer? John 5:39, 2 Tim. 3:15.

Clearly, the Scriptures are of extreme importance, and if we neglect

them it will be at our own peril. But how the Scriptures exactly help to

awaken and build our faith cannot be expressed in any human formula.

Not even the famous faith definition of Hebrews 11 provides this.

“Hebrews 11:1 doesn’t give us a definition of pistis [the Greek word

for faith] so much as a description of the way faith works. Certainly the

apostle isn’t advancing a psychological explanation of faith. Rather, he

sets out the two cardinal abilities that faith makes possible—turning

hope into reality and the unseen into sight.”—William G. Johnsson,

Hebrews, The Abundant Life Bible Amplifier, p. 205.

What

does James 2:18, 19 tell us about the character of faith? Why is

faith more than intellectual assent to belief in the existence of God

and other doctrines?

Why is Bible reading a life-changing experience for some people

while others claim that it “does nothing” for them? What would

you advise a person who reads the Bible and enjoys it as litera-

ture but claims not to hear the voice of God speaking in it?

TUESDAY

April 7

Exercising Faith

In their telling of the stories of Christ’s healing miracles, the Gospel

writers emphasized that the underlying factor was not magic but faith.

The people who were healed were challenged to exercise their faith.

“ ‘According to your faith will it be done to you,’ ” Jesus said (Matt.

9:29, NIV). Extraordinary experiences that carry an undeniable stamp

of miraculous di

vine intervention do not always result in faith, how-

ever. The truth is that many people find ways of explaining such

divine interventions away.

Read

Luke 16:30, 31. What important point can we take from here?

____________________________________________________________________

Our faith will be strengthened by the experience of seeing God at

work in our own lives and in the lives of others, but our faith often will

precede God’s interventions in our life. Faith will expect God to show

His hand. God has promised that He will act through us and on our

behalf if we have faith in Him. In that trusting faith we must take Him

at His word.

How

do Romans 1:17; Galatians 5:6; James 2:17, 18; and 1 John 5:4,

5 reflect various aspects of this “living through faith”?

____________________________________________________________________

What

is, on the other hand, the tragic result when faith is absent?

Rom. 11:20, Heb. 3:19.

____________________________________________________________________

The context of Romans 11:20 makes it clear that Paul was speaking

about the ancient Hebrews, who had received the promise of salvation

in a covenant relationship with Him. They could have experienced the

abundant life in Christ that faith brings to all who exercise it, but their

experience, and failure, is a clear reminder to us that “without faith it

is impossible to please God” (Heb. 11:6, NIV).

Though your faith is a gift, what good reasons do you have for

it? Also, even more important, what are practical ways in which

you can strengthen your faith? At the same time, what are sure

ways of losing it?

WEDNESDAY

April 8

Growing in Faith

Faith will increase if, when brought in contact with doubts and obsta-

cles, we press on ahead, claiming the promises of God regardless of how

we might feel at any given moment or regardless of how hostile the cir-

cumstances might be. Faith is more than a feeling; it’s a principle that

transcends the fickleness of human emotions. Faith is doing what we

know God asks us to do even though we don’t feel like doing it.

If you are growing in grace and the knowledge of Jesus Christ, you

will improve every privilege and opportunity to gain more knowledge

of the life and character of Christ; that is, you will do everything you

can to grow in grace and increase in faith.

Faith in Jesus will grow as you become better acquainted with Him.

This can happen by dwelling upon His life and love. You cannot dis-

honor God more than to profess to be His disciple while keeping your-

self at a distance from Him.

What

challenge did Peter hold out to the believers? 2 Pet. 3:18.

How

had the church in Thessalonica lived up to that challenge?

2 Thess. 1:3.

And

how does the “shield of faith” help you to grow spiritually? How

does faith relate to the rest of the “armour of God” as described

in Ephesians 6:10–18?

The goal of the Christian is to become “mature” in faith. This is a

lifelong process. While we experience the blessing of growth and

“stand firm in the faith” (1 Cor. 16:13, NIV), we may at times wonder

why others are still “weak” (Rom. 14:1). There is often a tendency to

forget that it also has taken most of us considerable time before we

arrived at where we are today spiritually. But whatever our reaction

may be, it never should be one of pride and judgment (1 Cor. 10:12).

God is the One who makes every seed of faith sprout, and He also is

to be credited for any growth that takes place in our spiritual life. Yet,

while that is a truth that must never be forgotten, we also must remem-

ber that by our personal choices we can help create the right kind of

environment in which spiritual growth can take place.

Are there associations you have, places you visit, or certain

kinds of media you expose yourself to that negatively impact

faith? If so, how willing are you to give them up? The answer

depends on how important your faith really is to you.

THURSDAY

April 9

Faith in a Person

Doctrines are important. When we say that we believe in God, we

will want to know more about God, and we will be eager to absorb

what He has revealed to us. It only is natural that we want to provide

a structured account of what we believe about our Creator and His

dealings with us, and we want to be sure that we know His will. But

though we believe that the doctrines of our church are true, our faith

is anchored, not in a doctrinal system alone, but in Jesus. The doc-

trines are not an end in and of themselves. The doctrines help us bet-

ter understand Jesus and what He has done for us.

In a sense, the role of doctrines in the Christian faith may be com-

pared to the role of grammar. We can communicate through language

only because there is a grammatical structure in the words we say and

write. Similarly, we give a structure to the content of our faith through

the doctrines. Anselm, a medieval theologian, spoke the famous words

that theology is faith that seeks to understand itself.

What

does the New Testament tell us about the importance of sound

doctrine? 1 Tim. 4:16, Titus 2:1.

Sound doctrine is essential, but doctrine and theology that remain life-

less theory can save no one. One even can be a theologian without being

a believer. Faith, ultimately, is not just holding a number of beliefs as bib-

lically correct but is trust in the Person of whom these doctrines speak.

How

is salvation in this life and the life beyond connected with faith

in the Source of life? John 3:36, 6:35.

What

is the fundamental conviction on which the church is built?

Matt. 16:13–19.

The passage in Matthew 16 often has been used as proof that the

apostle Peter should be considered the founder of the Christian

church. This idea finds no biblical support. On the contrary: Christ is

the Stone on which the church is built. (See 1 Pet. 2:4–8.) And it is the

faith in this Stone—the unshakable conviction that Jesus, the Son of

God, is our Savior—that makes the church what it is, not a human

institution but the church of God.

Someone says, “I believe in Jesus, believe in the teachings, yet

sometimes I can’t help struggling with doubt.” What would you

say to that person? What help and counsel could you give?

FRIDAY

April 10

Further Study:

”Peter exhorts his brethren to ‘grow in grace, and

in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.’ 2 Peter 3:18.

When the people of God are growing in grace, they will be constantly

obtaining a clearer understanding of His word. They will discern new

light and beauty in its sacred truths. This has been true in the history

of the church in all ages, and thus it will continue to the end. . . .

“By faith we may look to the hereafter and grasp the pledge of God

for a growth of intellect, the human faculties uniting with the divine,

and every power of the soul being brought into direct contact with the

Source of light. We may rejoice that all which has perplexed us in the

providences of God will then be made plain.”—Ellen G. White, Steps

to Christ, pp. 112, 113.

Discussion Questions:

● Hebrews 11 provides a gallery of heroes of faith. Notice,

though, how flawed in character and actions just about every one

of them were. What encouragement can you draw from their mis-

takes and sins when you yourself are tempted to give up faith

because of your own sins and flaws?

● Many of us have at some time or another gone through a cri-

sis of faith and have come out of this experience renewed. If this

has happened to you, how did you survive the crisis? What can

you do when it appears that members of your family or local

church members are in the midst of a similar struggle? What did

you learn from your own experience that could help them?

● What are the challenges to your faith? Are they of an intellec-

tual nature, that is in the area of science versus religion? Or are

they related to the environment in which you live and work, or

where you find your recreation? Or possibly in the area of rela-

tionships? Why is it important to meet these challenges head-on?

● You don’t need faith to believe in what you can prove; you

need faith to believe in what you can’t prove. Why is it important

to realize that regardless of all the evidence we have for our

beliefs, there will be things we just don’t understand?

Summary: Faith is experience. It has to do with certainty. And with trust.

The Scriptures play a role in the awakening, the strengthening, and the

sustenance of faith. But faith isn’t just belief; it is a principle that

guides how we live our lives before God and others.

INSIDE

A Place to Call Home

by ZHANA SEDYSHEVA

I live in Vladivostok, the large seaport on the eastern coast of Russia. My

young daughter was seriously ill, and I began to despair that she would

recover. I prayed to the great God above, and He healed her! I wanted to

thank Him for this miracle by worshiping in a church, but I didn’t know

which church I should pray in. My friend suggested that I worship at the

Adventist church in another part of the city.

I was impressed by the simplicity of the worship service I found there, and

I left feeling calm and at peace. I continued worshiping there and eventually

joined the Adventist Church. The congregation was growing, and eventually

the rented room where we met could not hold everyone who wanted to wor-

ship there. We prayed for another place to worship, and I hoped it would be

closer to where I lived.

We rented a restaurant where we could hold our worship services. The

restaurant was quiet, but a tourist club next door was so noisy that it dis-

rupted our worship. We prayed for a more suitable place to worship, a place

large enough to hold all of us, a place away from the noise of other busi-

nesses.

I worked in a kindergarten and asked the manager whether we could rent

the large kindergarten hall for our worship. We were permitted to use the

hall on Sabbaths. It was light and roomy—and quiet! But before long some-

one wrote an anonymous letter filled with angry criticism that the kinder-

garten would allow a religious group to meet in the building on Sabbaths.

I felt sick that our worship could cause problems for this school, which

had a fine reputation in the city. I tried to put the matter into God’s hands,

but again and again we were attacked. I was so troubled that I became phys-

ically sick. The church members prayed for me and for the kindergarten, and

God answered. I recovered my health, and the criticisms against the kinder-

garten were dismissed when the parents of children in the kindergarten

defended us.

Now the city of Vladivostok has given permission for our mother church

to build a new church and evangelistic center. Although we see no human

means to build this church, we know that God will provide for us. I am on

fire with a renewed desire to share His message with my colleagues and

friends.

Your Sabbath School mission offerings help us spread God’s message in

difficult-to-reach areas such as Russia. Thank you for your prayers and your

support.

ZHANA SEDYSHEVA is a Sabbath School superintendent in Vladivostok, Russia.

Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission.

Web site: www.adventistmission.org

tor

L ESSON

*April 11–17

Hope

SABBATH AFTERNOON

Read for This Week’s Study:

Luke 21:25, 26; John 5:24;

1 Cor. 15:20–26; 50–55; Revelation 21.

Memory Text:

“Always be prepared to give the answer to every-

one who asks you to give a reason for the hope that you have” (1 Peter

3:15, NIV).

he twentieth century began in a mood of great optimism. Since

the beginning of the Enlightenment Era, optimism had domi-

nated the way of thinking in the Western world. As human

beings, we could not only discover all truth using reason, we also were

capable of moral perfection. New inventions, new modes of travel, the

dramatic increase of medical knowledge, the introduction of new

machines, and the steady advancement of human morals would

improve all lives. But after two world wars, the holocaust, the nuclear

threat of the cold war, and worldwide terrorism as an ever-present

danger, coupled with the realization that humankind is in the process

of destroying the environment it needs for human survival, little rea-

son for optimism remains.

However, there is hope, not in what we see or in what we can do but

in what God has promised us through Jesus, His Son.

The Week at a Glance:

As followers of Christ we can have

hope even amid a world that in and of itself offers none. And

that’s because this hope is not based on ourselves or on anything

we or the world can offer. This hope is based solely on Jesus and

His promises to us.

*Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, April 18.

SUNDAY

April 12

Hope Amid Our World

Life after September 11, 2001, has greatly changed. People will

always remember the images of passenger airliners flying into the

twin towers of the World Trade Center. We all realize that it can hap-

pen again. There is no way we can be fully protected from people who

are prepared to die as they use an airplane, filled with men, women,

and children, as a flying bomb or are willing to blow themselves up at

a bus stop or in a supermarket. There is fear everywhere, and consid-

ering the world we live in, that fear is understandable.

What

did Jesus single out as one of the characteristics of the time of

the end? Luke 21:25, 26.

____________________________________________________________________

“Transgression has almost reached its limit. Confusion fills the

world, and a great terror is soon to come upon human beings. The end

is very near. God’s people should be preparing for what is to break

upon the world as an overwhelming surprise.”—Ellen G. White, Child

Guidance, p. 555. Imagine what she would say were she alive in our

post-9/11 environment!

Ours is a world of war, corruption, greed, and terror. And we know

that many unpleasant things yet will occur in the future—in the world,

and even in the church. But whatever happens, we have hope through

Jesus. There may be anguish among the nations. People may even

faint from terror—“apprehensive of what is coming on the world”

(Luke 21:26, NIV)—but this will not be the case for those who have

been expecting their Lord. None of these horrible things should take

us by surprise. After all, the Bible has warned us all through its pages

that we should expect toil, suffering, and trouble until Jesus returns.

The fact that we see these things should only help confirm for us the

truth of God’s Word.

Read

Luke 21:28. What hope is Jesus offering us amid all the turmoil

and fear of the world?

____________________________________________________________________

Why is it so fruitless, and empty, to place our hope in this world

or in what this world offers? Why do we tend to do that, even

though it should be obvious by now that if we are to have any

hope, it must be a hope that transcends whatever this world can

give?

MONDAY

April 13

Hope—Here and Now

The Christian hope has to do with the future: Christ’s return; the res-

urrection of God’s people; a new heaven and a new earth; eternity with

God. But salvation is also a present reality. That kind of hope sepa-

rates us from those without the certainty that life has meaning and that

in Christ humanity has an eternal future. The apostle Paul reminds us

of the radical change that takes place when we accept Jesus as our

Lord. As long as we are separated from Christ, we are “without hope

and without God in the world” (Eph. 2:12, NIV). But all this changes

when we are no longer “far away” from God but have been “brought

near through the blood of Christ” (vs. 13, NIV).

what terms did Jesus describe the radical change that takes place

when we “hear” His Word and believe in Him? John 5:24.

____________________________________________________________________

What

kind of life can be ours? John 10:10. What does this mean, and

how should we be experiencing this promise?

____________________________________________________________________

“Life” is one of the key words of the Gospel of John. In Matthew,

Mark, and Luke the concept of life is primarily eternal life. “But in the

Gospel of John, life is particularly focused on the present reality of

what Jesus does for those who believe in Him. . . .

“There are two keys to attaining life at its best. The first is to know

that the source of that life is found only in Christ (John 14:6; 6:33–58;

1 John 5:11, 12). Wherever Jesus is, life is (John 11:25, 26). The sec-

ond key to attaining life is believing (1:4, 12). It is through continu-

ous relationship with Jesus that individuals appropriate the life that is

ever present in Jesus (3:16, 36).”—Jon Paulien, John, The Abundant

Life Bible Amplifier (Boise, Idaho: Pacific Press

Publishing

Association, 1995), p. 189.

How has Jesus changed your life for the better here and now?

What do you have now that you didn’t have before coming to

know Jesus and the hope He gives us?

TUESDAY

April 14

Hope Beyond the Grave

Death comes to all of us (unless we are alive at the moment of

Christ’s return). All of us have lost loved ones in death. We are daily

confronted with the grim reality of death. We see it as we pass ceme-

teries, see hearses, or switch on the television news. But even worse,

we face it up close as we say our final goodbye to a friend or relative.

Death is our archenemy, but it is one that will be defeated.

What

is the glorious truth about the reality of death? 1 Cor. 15:20–26,

50–55, 1 Pet. 1:3.

____________________________________________________________________

How

does the certainty of the resurrection divide humanity? 1 Thess.

4:14.

____________________________________________________________________

The apostle Paul, in his famous chapter about the resurrection

(1 Corinthians 15), stresses that the hope of the resurrection is an

essential component of our total faith experience (vss. 12–19). If there

is no resurrection, our faith is empty.

Of course, there are many aspects of the physical resurrection that we

do not understand. But of one thing we can be sure: Our “resurrection”

does not depend on the safekeeping of the present material substances

of our bodies. It depends on the power of our Creator to safeguard our

identity and to re-create us at a given moment with a new (perfect) body

that will never need any cosmetic surgery or antiaging pills.

We have no idea how God is going to perform this miracle. But the

God who could create life here to begin with certainly has the power

to re-create the earth and fill it with the people whose identities have

been safeguarded in the divine memory. Our hope is not based on any-

thing we can verify with our intellect or our senses. The resurrection

involves a realm of existence far beyond anywhere science can take

us. But it is based on the fact that Christ has conquered death. As a

result, the death of the believer is but a temporary “sleep” from which

he or she will be raised and given eternal life.

Even with this great hope, the greatest any of us could have, we

still hate death, we still fear it, and we still flee from it. This is

only natural (for death is unnatural). At the same time, what

can we do to nourish and strengthen our confidence in the great

promise that we have regarding eternal life, a promise that

alone can lessen our fear of death now?

WEDNESDAY

April 15

Eternal Hope

How can finite beings ever understand what it is to be infinite? How

can we, as mortals—most of whom will not live beyond 80 or 90

years—ever understand what it is to be immortal and live forever?

Eternal life is not simply a continuation of our present life. That would

in many ways more resemble “hell” than “heaven.” Eternal life has an

altogether different quality. While we are still in our present mortal

state, we will have to be content with a glimpse of what the future

holds: We see but “a poor reflection” and “know [only] in part” (1 Cor.

13:12, NIV).

what ways will eternal life differ from our present existence? 1 Cor.

15:42, 43, 52; Revelation 21. What things will be similar?

____________________________________________________________________

We are left with lots of questions as we contemplate the life that

awaits us, questions that will never be fully answered here and now.

But we can learn from Jesus’ own resurrection. It is important to note

that the Christ who was raised from the dead was the same Person as

the One who a few days earlier died on the cross. He arose with a “glo-

rified” body that was no longer subject to the laws of nature in the way

our present mortal bodies are. Yet at the same time, He possessed a

continuity with the “human form” that He had prior to His death and

resurrection. He was the same Person, recognizable by His outward

appearance, His voice, and His gestures. That gives us good reason to

conclude that in our new “glorious bodies” we will be recognized by

those we knew in this life and who will enjoy the life in the beyond

with us.

And yet, we can also experience some of that eternal life now. Paul

explains to us (Rom. 8:10) that the Spirit will enter the person who has

turned to Christ. The believer, therefore, is already touched by the eter-

nal life that will become a full reality in the world to come. The pres-

ence of the Spirit is the pledge of our eternal salvation (Eph. 1:13, 14).

Try to imagine what life will be like in a new heaven, a new

earth, with new bodies. Let your imagination soar; write out a

paragraph based on what we find in the Bible, about what this

new life will be like. How foolish to throw it all away for any-

thing that this life offers us.

THURSDAY

April 16

Christ Our Hope

Long before Christ entered this world, His coming had been pre-

dicted. True to those promises, He did indeed come. Manifold are the

promises that He will come a second time. He said so Himself: “ ‘I will

come back!’ ” On the final page of the Bible this promise is repeated:

“ ‘Yes, I am coming soon’ ” (Rev. 22:20, NIV). This is the corporate

hope of Christian believers. It is “the blessed hope—the glorious

appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13, NIV).

what sense does the hope of the Christian culminate in the second

coming of Jesus? (Rev. 22:7, 10–12, 20). Why are these promises so

crucial to us?

____________________________________________________________________

How

does the time aspect mentioned in 2 Peter 3:8, 9 impact our

understanding of the term soon in connection with the Second

Coming?

The ultimate solution for the sin problem and all the misery sin has

caused is not found in anything humanity can invent or arrange but in the

intervention of heaven through our Lord Jesus Christ. Our hope is not in

human technology, clever politicians, or social and moral progress.

These things never can solve the problem of death. And although it is

important to know what will precede and accompany the coming of the

Lord, it is even more important that we are sure of the One we expect.

Our Lord will come soon. “It is just a matter of time, that’s all. And

no one can change this fact. No tyrant can reach up and grab the world

from His grasp. It remains firmly and forever in the hands of the

Crucified One. None can undo Calvary anymore than they can undo

their birth. . . . Since the cross, we live in time filled by the victory of

Calvary—time determined by that goal. Hence, whether they know it

or not, humanity does not merely advance toward a hoped-for goal in

some distant day, with the possibility that it may never come. No!

Humanity moves triumphantly from a goal Jesus has already

reached.”—Norman Gulley, Christ Is Coming (Hagerstown, Md.:

Review and Herald

Publishing Association, 1998), p. 540.

A philosopher named Martin Heidegger once said that “only a

god can save us.” Whatever he himself might have meant by that

idea, why is it so true? Where are you placing your hope? If it’s

in anything but the true God, why is this hope a false one?

FRIDAY

April 17

Further Study:

Norman Gulley’s book Christ Is Coming is prob-

ably the most complete Adventist book in recent times about last-day

events and the second coming of Christ. You may want to scan the

book and read a few chapters, in particular the chapter titled “The

Greatest Rescue of All Time” (pp. 538–552). For the classic descrip-

tion of the moment when our hope will be fulfilled, see Ellen G.

White, The Great Controversy (in particular, pp. 662–678).

Try to commit the following majestic words to memory: “The great

controversy is ended. Sin and sinners are no more. The entire universe

is clean. One pulse of harmony and gladness beats through the vast

creation. From Him who created all flow life and light and gladness,

throughout the realms of illimitable space. From the minutest atom to

the greatest world, all things, animate and inanimate, in their unshad-

owed beauty and perfect joy, declare that God is love.”—Ellen G.

White, The Great Controversy, p. 678.

Discussion Questions:

● In class, read your depictions of what you envision eternal life

in a new earth will be like. Compare and discuss what was pre-

sented.

● How do you respond to those who say that this hope Christians

have of another existence causes them not to care deeply enough

about the woes of this existence?

● How can you remain hopeful, even when everything seems to

go against you?

● How do we experience, here and now, some of the hope that we

have in Christ? How should lives differ now because of this hope?

What can we do, in a real and visible way, to show others the

immediate fruit and benefits of being a follower of the living

God?

Summary: Hope is a vital component of the Christian life. It is firmly

based on what Christ accomplished on the cross. The Christian’s hope

has to do with the here and now, for the kingdom that is to come is, in

principle, already present in the believer. Yet, the full realization of the

blessed hope is future. We know that the world is still affected by the

results of Satan’s rebellion, but the outcome is secure: Our Lord

reigns, and His eternal kingdom will soon be realized in all its glory.

Our hope is to be citizens of that kingdom forever.

INSIDE

Finding the Savior

Anna* was a new Adventist Christian when she met Ahmet* while work-

ing in Turkey. Since Sabbath was her day off, Ahmet arranged to have

Sabbath off so they could spend time together. Although Ahmet was not a

Christian, Anna sensed that he was searching for faith. In time the two were

married.

After their son was born, Anna arranged to take him to Germany for vac-

cinations they could not get in Turkey. She was surprised when Ahmet said

that he wanted to go with her, for she knew that he did not like Germany. He

explained that he wanted to get away from his own family who were urging

him to convert her to his family’s traditional faith.

While in Germany, Ahmet met many Adventists and was impressed with

how warm and friendly they were. He saw how different Christians are from

other people. His interest in Christianity grew.

When the couple returned to Turkey, they joined a small group of believ-

ers who worship in a private home. (The Adventist Church in Turkey has

fewer than a hundred members, most of whom are not ethnic Turks.) The pas-

tor welcomed Ahmet and asked him to help translate Sabbath School lessons

into Turkish. Ahmet agreed. Anna noticed that Ahmet often read her Bible

and her religious books when he thought she was not watching.

As Ahmet translated the lessons, questions sometimes arose regarding the

meaning of a Bible text or how to phrase a question. As Ahmet and Anna

talked about such issues, Anna realized that Ahmet was thinking deeply

about his relationship with Jesus. One question they discussed was, “What is

Jesus to you?” Ahmet thought a moment then answered, “Jesus is my Savior.”

Anna praised God for this demonstration of faith in her seeking husband.

One night Ahmet couldn’t sleep, so he went to the living room to read his

Bible. That night he decided to be baptized. The next day he called the pas-

tor and said, “If you have nothing better to do today, you will baptize me?”

Later that day Anna and Ahmet went to the seashore, where Ahmet sealed his

commitment to Christ in baptism.

The couple closes their bakery on Sabbaths, which prompts people to ask

why. Carefully Anna shares her faith with a prayer that God will open their

hearts. They also offer guided tours of biblical sites such as Ephesus. Even

the bus drivers notice that Christians are different. They ask questions about

what Christians believe, and this opens opportunities to share God’s love with

His other children.

Ahmet and Anna thank God that the world church supports missionaries in

Turkey. Our mission offerings provide resources to help lead searching souls

to Jesus in this great unreached land.

* Not their real names.

Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission.

Web site: www.adventistmission.org

tor

L ESSON

*April 18–24

Life

SABBATH AFTERNOON

Read for This Week’s Study:

Gen. 2:7; Ps. 139:13, 14;

John 1:1–3; 3; 10:10; 2 Cor. 5:17; Phil. 2:1–5.

Memory Text:

“ ‘I have come that they may have life, and have

it to the full’ ” (John 10:10, NIV).

eople nowadays live much longer than in previous generations,

especially people in the so-called developed world. And that’s,

of course, good. Yet, it’s one thing to live a long time, but what

about the quality of life itself? Sometimes doctors perform all kinds

of heroic actions to artificially keep a person alive even if the person

has very little, if any, quality of life left.

But quality of life is not restricted to an acceptable level of physical

well-being; it has a wider application. What do we do with the years

that we have been given? Do we live with a purpose and in harmony

with others? Do we live in satisfying relationships with fellow human

beings and, most of all, with our Creator? These are important ques-

tions for all who have been given the gift of life.

The Week at a Glance:

Life is a gift from God only.Now

that we have this life, what does it mean for us? How are we to live

it? Because it’s a gift, we are under a divine obligation to take care

of our lives, both physically and spiritually. At the same time, our

belief in Jesus brings us into the community of other believers,

and we become part of a new family, both in heaven and on earth,

all of which should impact the quality of life we have here now.

*Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, April 25.

SUNDAY

April 19

The Gift of Physical Life

How did life originate? Some people point to a godless evolution-

ary unfolding of human existence. Others argue for a divine role in the

slow process of millions of years during which “simple” forms of life

somehow made their appearance and, subsequently, developed into

more complex organisms, including humans. This theory, however,

creates more questions than it answers (and besides, nothing in the

Bible even hints that God used evolution to create humanity).

Meanwhile, several renowned scholars have in recent years convinc-

ingly argued that this theory is in a deep crisis. But even the staunchest

supporters of evolutionary thinking must admit that life remains as

great a mystery as ever.

At the same time, those who believe in God as the Creator of this

world and of all the universe do not have all the answers either. But

the creationist approach is far more logical and coherent than the

improbable theory that human life resulted from chance.

What

does divine revelation tell us about the origin of life? Gen. 2:7,

John 1:1–3.

What is true for the mystery of life in general is also true for each

human life. Although we possess a lot of scientific knowledge about

the processes involved in the conception and growth of human life,

each new parent who holds a newborn child in his or her arms knows

intuitively that this new life is nothing less than a miracle. It is a fun-

damental Christian conviction that life—and human life in a very spe-

cial sense—is sacred.

what words does David describe the miracle of human life and the

magnificent design of the human body? Ps. 139:13, 14.

Who does not know the words of the well-known song that says

God has “the whole world in His hands”? This applies to the universe

and to our entire planet. But also to each one of us individually; who-

ever we are and wherever we are, God holds us in His hands. We owe

our physical life to Him, all of it—from beginning to end.

What difference does it make that God is the Creator of all life,

including our own? How should our stance on the origin of life

impact our views about things such as the death penalty, abor-

tion, and euthanasia?

MONDAY

April 20

Physical Education

If we owe our existence to our Creator, it stands to reason that we

also owe it to Him to be careful with what He has entrusted to us. There

is ample evidence in the Bible that God is interested in our physical

well-being. He manifested His care for the people of Israel time and

again. He gave His people numerous instructions about healthful eat-

ing and sanitation. He gave them manna in the wilderness. He looked

after Elijah when there was famine in the land. These are just a few of

many examples of God’s care for our physical well-being.

This truth becomes even clearer in the ministry of our Lord. Even a

cursory reading of the Gospels leaves us in no doubt that Jesus’ under-

standing of religion was very much practice-oriented.

what ways did Jesus show interest in His own physical well-being and

that of the people around Him? Take a look at the following pas-

sages and analyze what implications they have for us today.

• healing (Mark 5)

• rest (Mark 6:30–32)

• feeding (Mark 6:33–43; esp. vs. 34)

• Sabbath (Luke 4:16)

what other areas did Jesus show His concern for the physical well-

being of people?

____________________________________________________________________

The way we treat our body has everything to do with stewardship.

Whether our material possessions, our time, our talents, or our body—

it is all God’s property, and thus, we are required as faithful stewards

to look after these gifts. But care for our body also is intimately

related to the biblical view of the human person. Many Christians

believe that we consist of an immortal soul that inhabits a mortal shell

of flesh and blood. The Bible, however, depicts humanity as a unity of

body, soul, and spirit, which cannot be separated. Our religion, there-

fore, does not concern just an immortal “something” but our entire

being. It impacts all aspects of our existence.

While the Bible indicates that some foods are unsuitable for

human consumption (see, for example, Le

viticus 11), the king-

dom is not to be reduced to a question of what we eat and drink

(see Rom. 14:17). How do we strike the right balance, not just in

diet b

ut in all areas of healthy living?

TUESDAY

April 21

Spiritual Life

“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things

are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Cor. 5:17).

What

is your understanding of what that above text means? How are

we a “new creature” in Jesus?

____________________________________________________________________

All inhabitants of this earth, whether they ever realize it or not, are

God’s by birth. Yet, life we all share in this world is, as we all know,

very temporary. Sin has brought decay and death not only to every

human being but to all life on the planet. Nothing is immune to the

crushing devastation caused by sin.

The good news, however, is that we have a choice whether this life is

all we have or whether we will accept the wonderful gift of eternal life.

This eternal life, however, demands a turning around, a conversion.

The Bible uses several metaphors to describe this crucial experience.

The most graphic is that of a new birth, the image used to depict the

turning point at which a person accepts the gift of eternal life in Christ.

When this happens, the “old person” dies, and a “new person” is born.

Nowhere

in the Bible is the need for this new birth described with

greater clarity than in John 3. Read the section (vss. 1–21) that

relates Jesus’ encounter with Nicodemus. What does it tell us

about the nature of this new birth? What is your own under-

standing of the new birth?

____________________________________________________________________

The new life of the follower of Jesus, who has turned around from

a life of self-service to a life of commitment to the kingdom, will be

characterized by growth. The newly born spiritual person needs to

feed on the right kind of spiritual food and must gradually mature. The

apostle Peter encourages us to “grow in the grace and knowledge of

our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Pet. 3:18, NIV).

If someone were to ask you, “Have you been born-again?” what

would you reply? What does your answer say to you about your

walk with Jesus?

WEDNESDAY

April 22

Social Life

Humans are, by nature, social beings. Of course, there are moments

we like to be alone. We need private time for prayer and contempla-

tion. Some need more private space and private time than do others.

But we tend to feel sorry for people who are always alone, and particu-

larly for those who do not have sufficient social skills to establish

bonds of friendship and who consistently fail to enter into meaningful

relationships.

The Bible pictures people as parts of various social networks. The

family, friendship, ethnicity, community, and church are dominant

themes. The Bible points to Jesus’ Father as the Father of all

humankind, which means we all are brothers and sisters in a very real

sense (Acts 17:26). Living in relationships is the essence of human

life. When Adam was created, God immediately created a partner for

him. Family life was a divinely devised model for human happiness.

The Bible repeatedly underlines the tremendous value of genuine

friendship and the blessings of belonging to a wider community.

What

is the key to successfully managing of our social relationships?

How well do you manifest these principles? Phil. 2:1–5.

____________________________________________________________________

The various aspects of our Christian life are blended in our mem-

bership to the body of Christ: the church. The church is more than a

place where like-minded people meet and enjoy fellowship.

Nonetheless, for many the church is indeed the focal point of their

social life. This has both positive and negative aspects. Without

Christian friends we have few, if any, role models. Associating with

others who also serve God and also have adopted a biblical lifestyle

will help us to remain faithful and to grow in our Christian relation-

ship. But if we have no friends outside the circle of fellow believers,

we will have few opportunities for witnessing. In many parts of the

world friendship evangelism is the most successful method of church

growth.

Studies have shown that most new Adventists lose virtually all

their non-Adventist friends within seven years. Take a look at

yourself. Is this the pattern you see? What are the reasons? Why

is it worth investing time and energy to build friendships with

non-Adventists, or even with non-Christians?

THURSDAY

April 23

Fullness of Life

John 10:10 records Jesus’ famous statement that He has come to

give us life “to the full” (NIV). Other Bible translations speak of

“ab

undant life.”

Here is a partial list of important components of this “full” life.

Try to add other components to that list and find scriptural sup-

port for these various aspects:

1. It is a life full of possibilities.

2. It is a life with a purpose.

3. It is a life of inner peace.

4. It is a life with a mission.

As we grow in our Christian life, we become more and more con-

vinced that Christ does indeed offer us life “to the full.” We often

have, however, a hard time explaining this to those who have not com-

mitted themselves to Christ. For them the Christian life appears to be

rather boring. They dislike the fact that it seems to bring all kinds of

restrictions. But Christians have learned that not all experiences one

might have actually make our lives richer. Many things we might do

carry a minus sign rather than a plus sign and contribute to an inner

emptiness rather than a fullness of life.

What

are some kinds of experiences we’re all better off without, and

why?

____________________________________________________________________

“Life to the full” is not a combination of good health, good looks,

satisfactory education, and a nice income. And although strong, lov-

ing relationships are certainly part of it, there is considerably more

than these things. Life “to the full” is the kind of life that has mean-

ing. It is a life that issues inner peace. Its happiness does not depend

primarily on external, material circumstances. It is a life that is con-

nected to the Source of life and will, therefore, be eternal.

Why does all this talk of an “abundant life” sound pleasing?

What about those who seem to have an “abundant life” but

don’t know Jesus and don’t seem to have the slightest interest in

knowing Him? How do we understand this phenomenon, espe-

cially when we all know Christians who are suffering terribly

now? See 2 Cor. 4:18.

FRIDAY

April 24

Further Study:

Ellen G. White’s famous book Steps to Christ

focuses on our life in Christ. If, in the context of this week’s lesson,

one has to choose one particular chapter, one might well go to chap-

ter 8: “Growing Up Into Christ” (pp. 67–76). “A life in Christ is a life

of restfulness. There may be no ecstasy of feeling, but there should be

an abiding, peaceful trust. Your hope is not in yourself; it is in Christ.

Your weakness is united to His strength, your ignorance to His wis-

dom, your frailty to His enduring might. So you are not to look to

yourself, not to let the mind dwell upon self, but look to Christ. Let

the mind dwell upon His love, upon the beauty, the perfection, of His

character.”—Page 70.

Discussion Questions:

● When people are severely disabled or terminally ill, the ques-

tion often asked is whether their life still has “quality.” Should

the quality of life be defined primarily in physical terms, or are

other aspects also important, or possibly even more essential?

How, too, does our understanding of the origin of life influence

our answer?

● For many people the looming specter of death robs life of all

meaning and purpose. After all, if sooner or later we’ll all be

dead and every memory of us forgotten, what can this life possi-

bly mean? How has Jesus answered that question for us and

eliminated this concern?

● What aspects of your contemporary culture rob life of its full

meaning? That is, what kind of ideals and moral values are being

promoted that reduce life to something less than it should be?

How can we as Adventist Christians respond to these challenges?

● In what ways can our health message and principles of better

living play into the promise of an “abundant life”? Might we be

shortchanging ourselves on this promise?

Summary: This week’s lesson focused on the “full” or “abundant” life

found in Jesus Christ. It is a life lived in a responsible way, caring for

our physical life as best we can. It is also a life lived in relationships,

for God designed humans to live in communion with others. Most of

all, it is a life totally renewed in Jesus, a life that will be changed and

growing in God’s grace.

INSIDE

Making Up for Lost Time

by JESSE HURDLE

I ran away from home when I was 12 and grew up on the streets of Trinidad.

I survived by stealing and fighting and selling drugs. At 18 I returned to

Tobago, where my mom lived. She had become a Seventh-day Adventist and

wanted me to go to church with her, but I wasn’t interested.

I married a good woman, but I didn’t change. She went to church and

prayed for me, and I went out to gamble. Then something happened, and I real-

ized that my life was heading in the wrong direction. I hardly knew my chil-

dren, and I was a terrible example to them. So, one Sabbath I went to church

with my wife and committed my life to Christ. “This is an answer to prayer!”

she cried.

I had a lot to make right with God and my family, but God changed me. He

saved me and my marriage in spite of myself.

The church members surrounded me with prayer and put me to work. I

grew in Christ and obeyed when He told me to share my faith with others.

I told my friends, my colleagues, and people on the street how God had

changed me. I challenged them to give God a try.

Still, I was surprised when God asked me to hold evangelistic meetings, for

I’d never gone beyond primary school. But we stepped out in faith and made

the meetings a family affair. We pitched a tent and held three weeks of meet-

ings. My wife sang, my daughter helped with the programs, and my son han-

dled the public address system. When the meetings came to a close, the peo-

ple asked for more, so we added another week of meetings. Twelve people

were baptized.

Ronny was one of my best friends. He helped me repair the church roof and

would do anything I asked. But he refused to let God into his life. “I’ll go to

church when the undertaker takes me,” he’d say. I talked, I prayed, I urged. But

he refused. Then one day he died of a massive heart attack at 45. His death

was a huge blow to me. I felt that I had failed God because my friend refused

to accept Jesus as his Savior.

Ronny’s death made me realize that death is

only one heartbeat away. I can’t let someone go

without sharing a word about God. I may not

get another chance to speak to them. I think of

the people I led into drugs before I was a

Christian. Now I want to lead them all to Christ.

Please share your faith with others, and

give your mission offerings now. One day it

will be too late.

JESSE HURDLE shares his faith with everyone he meets in

Tobago.

Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission.

Web site: www.adventistmission.org

tor

L ESSON

*April 25–May 1

Revelation

SABBATH AFTERNOON

Read for This Week’s Study:

Exod. 7:1–6, Ps. 19:1–4,

Rom. 1:18–20, 2 Tim. 3:14–16, Heb. 1:1–3.

Memory Text:

“In the past God spoke to our forefathers through

the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last

days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all

things, and through whom he made the universe” (Hebrews 1:1, 2,

NIV).

or some people, God is a distant power who at a remote moment

in the past set the world in motion but no longer interferes with

what happens here. That, of course, is not the God portrayed in

the Bible, who instead is consistently shown to be a loving Father, the

Creator who continues to take an intimate interest in His creatures. He

is the Covenant God, and He seeks to establish a bond between

Himself and the people made in His image.

This God is a great Communicator. Human words cannot ade-

quately explain who and what God is, but the fact that He constantly

is referred to as speaking to His people is utterly significant.

As soon as Adam was created, God spoke to Him. Immediately after

the first human inhabitant of this world had sinned, God called to him,

Adam, “ ‘where are you?’ ” (Gen. 3:9, NIV). And ever since, God has

spoken to humankind in various ways (Heb. 1:1). Ev

en on the final

page of the Bible we find confirmation of this in the divine appeal,

“The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’ ” (Rev. 22:17, NIV). This week

e’ll look at various ways He speaks to us today.

The Week at a Glance:

The God who spoke the world

into existence speaks to all who are willing to listen.

* Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, May 2.

SUNDAY

April 26

God Reveals Himself Through Nature

Read

Psalm 19:1–4 and Romans 1:18–20. These are the two most

cited texts when the concept of God’s revelation through nature is

under discussion. Summarize in your own words what these two

passages teach us.

____________________________________________________________________

“God has surrounded us with nature’s beautiful scenery in order to

attract and interest the mind. It is His design that we should associate

the glories of nature with His character. If we faithfully study the book

of nature, we shall find it a fruitful source for contemplating the infinite

love and power of God.”—Ellen G. White, The Adventist Home, p. 144.

Those who believe in the Bible will be confirmed in their convictions

that when they look at the starlit sky or see the majestic trees in the

forests and the beauty of the setting sun behind snow-covered moun-

taintops, they are seeing the works of a loving and powerful Creator.

When they see an eagle in flight, admire a tulip, or marvel about the

intricacies of the human body, they see evidences of God’s invisible

qualities and agree that nature indeed declares the glory of God.

But the Bible passages take us a step further. They also suggest that

the nonbeliever, by looking at nature, will somehow catch a glimpse

of a divine Power that designed and made all that is. In today’s world

many close their eyes to this aspect. They have imbibed evolutionary

thinking and want to explain all that exists in terms of chance and

necessity. But, increasingly, scholars are admitting that there is so

much evidence of intelligent design that this can be ignored only by

those who stubbornly close their eyes to it.

Ask

yourself a simple question: What is the more logical and reason-

able explanation for the beauty and complexity of life: pure chance

or a purposeful and planned-out creation? Defend your answer.

____________________________________________________________________

Read Psalm 19:1–4 and Romans 1:18–20 again. To what extent

is God revealed in nature? At the same time, what things about

God does nature not tell us? However revealing nature is, what

else do we know about God that we can’t find by looking at the

glories of creation?

MONDAY

April 27

God Speaks Through Our Conscience

“Conscience” is sometimes defined as the faculty, or inward princi-

ple, that helps us decide between right and wrong. Even those who do

not believe in God usually possess some insight into what is morally

acceptable and what must be rejected (Rom. 2:14, 15). The Christian

believes that God is the supreme Lawgiver and that He has placed in

humanity a conscience, even though sin has blunted this God-given

tool for moral decision-making. In most Bible translations we do not

find the word conscience in the Old Testament, though it occurs

numerous times in the New Testament. But whether or not the term is

used, the concept is present throughout Scripture.

Name

a few stories in which we can see the impact of conscience on

the lives of people. (See, for instance, Gen. 42:18–23, Daniel 5, Matt.

27:3–5, John 8:1–9.)

____________________________________________________________________

Important though our conscience is, it is not always totally trust-

worthy. We notice that people in good conscience often come to very

diverse conclusions about what to do in particular circumstances. The

apostle Paul was aware of this, as his remarkable statement in

1 Corinthians 4:4 shows: “My conscience is clear, but that does not

make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me” (NIV). The same

apostle also warns that we can resist the pull of our conscience. In

fact, some people appear to have seared their consciences with a hot

iron (1 Tim. 4:2) or have corrupted them (Titus 1:15). On the other

hand, there are ways of sharpening one’s conscience. Being in tune

with God by regularly reading His Word and by frequently communi-

cating with Him in prayer will make us more sensitive to the voice of

the Spirit, who can speak to us through our conscience.

How do you arrive at important moral decisions? Do you listen to

your conscience? How can you be sure that your small, inner

voice is not overruled by other voices in and around you? How

can you know whether or not you can trust your conscience?

When was the last time you let your conscience be your guide and

ended up making a wrong moral decision? What did you learn

from that experience that could help you from repeating it?

_____________________________________________________

TUESDAY

April 28

God Speaks Through Prophets

Many people have a very restricted view of the gift of prophecy.

Prophecy is mainly seen in terms of predictions, and the prophets they

are aware of are those who have given their names to a number of

books in the Bible. The facts are different. God used prophets on a

much wider scale than one would think. And prophecy is not only

about predictions. It stands for much more.

How

does the relationship between Moses and his brother Aaron

illustrate the key meaning of the word prophet? Exod. 7:1–6.

The passage of Exodus 7:1–6 highlights the true work of a prophet.

Moses, who himself is referred to as a great prophet (Deut. 34:10–12),

was assisted by his brother, who served as his spokesperson. “Moses

is like God to Aaron, who is like a prophet to Pharaoh. The clear idea

is that prophets don’t manufacture their own speeches but only pass

on what they have heard from God.”—Jon Dybdahl, Exodus, The

Abundant Life Bible Amplifier (Boise, Idaho: Pacific Press

Publishing Association, 1994), p. 80.

A prophet is a man or a woman who speaks on behalf of God. Those

words have authority because the message comes from God, even

though the prophet may choose his or her own words to convey that

message. God used this manner of communicating with His people

quite extensively, as Amos underlined when he stated, “The Sovereign

Lord does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the

prophets” (Amos 3:7, NIV).

What

does Scripture say about the continuation of the gift of

prophecy beyond Old Testament times? Look at the following

sample of the New Testament evidence. What do you conclude?

1. Prophets mentioned by name (Luke 1:67, 2:36, Acts 13:1)

2. The abiding gift (1 Cor. 12:28, 14:1–5)

3. False prophets (2 Pet. 2:1, Rev. 2:20)

4. A characteristic of the remnant church (Rev. 12:17, 19:10)

What has been the impact of the writings of Ellen G. White

ho had the gift of prophecy) upon your own life? How has

God spoken to you through her ministry? In what ways could

you better avail yourself of the blessings of this gift?

WEDNESDAY

April 29

God Reveals Himself in His Word

Many of the things God has revealed through His prophets in the

past have not been handed down and have not, eventually, found their

way into the Bible. But some of those revelations from God, which

were received by a few dozen people during a period of more than fif-

teen hundred years, were written down. The compilations of these

writings is our Bible. Jesus and His contemporaries treasured the writ-

ings that we today refer to as the Old Testament. Today our Scriptures

include also the Gospels and other apostolic writings from the first

period of the church.

Paul

commended Timothy for his diligent reading of God’s Word,

which, he said, has the capacity to make you wise for salvation.

How does he in this context further describe the influence of the

Written Word of God? 2 Tim. 3:14–16.

____________________________________________________________________

“As we contemplate the great things of God’s Word, we look into a

fountain that broadens and deepens beneath our gaze. Its breadth and

depth pass our knowledge. As we gaze, the vision widens; stretched

out before us, we behold a boundless, shoreless sea. Such study has

vivifying power. The mind and heart acquire new strength, new life.

“This experience is the highest evidence of the divine authorship of

the Bible. We receive God’s Word as food for the soul through the

same evidence by which we receive bread as food for the body.”

—Ellen G. White, My Life Today, p. 26.

More Bibles are sold today than ever before. New versions for spe-

cific target groups keep appearing. We have Bible versions that are

more easily accessible to beginners, while we also have versions that

lend themselves to liturgical use. And this is a good thing. But that

does not necessarily mean that the Bible also is more widely read. In

fact, there are indications that Bible reading among Christians, includ-

ing Seventh-day Adventists, is on the wane. Many do not know their

Bible as a former generation once knew it. But only at our own eter-

nal peril can we ignore the Word of God, which has the power to speak

to us afresh every time we open it.

How much time did you spend with your Bible during the past

week? In the past month? Is Bible reading a prominent feature

in your daily program? If not, why not? Compare the time you

spent in front of the TV with the time spent reading the Word.

What changes might you need to make?

THURSDAY

April 30

Christ—God Comes to Us in Person

Getting letters from someone on a regular basis can go a long way

toward getting to know that person more intimately. Receiving a pic-

ture will reveal another dimension of that person. But you will not

really know that person until you actually have spent time face-to-

face.

Because of sin, God could no longer commune with us as He had

done with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Though He has com-

municated with us very effectively in various ways, He wanted to give

us a fuller picture of Himself. And this He has done through Jesus.

How

did God provide us with this full picture of Himself? John 1:1, 2;

John 14:9; Heb. 1:1–3.

The precise wording of John 1:1 is important. John does not say that

God showed Himself in the flesh, or appeared in the flesh. Rather,

John says that Jesus became flesh at a definite point in time. Jesus

came from above and became flesh; that is, He took on Himself our

humanity. That our Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became

flesh for our salvation is probably the one tenet of the Christian faith

that is basic to all Christian denominations.

What

relationship is there between God’s revelation in Scripture and

His revelation in Jesus Christ? John 5:36–40.

For some the study of the Bible is an end in itself. Indeed, many

gifted Bible scholars don’t believe in God at all. Yet, reading the Bible

without seeking to know the Lord whom it reveals can no more lead

you to salvation than reading a recipe can fill your empty stomach.

Jesus Christ is the focus of the Scriptures. The Bible is about Him,

about what He has revealed to us regarding the nature and character

of God. The Bible doesn’t save us, but it is the authoritative source of

truth about the only One who can, Jesus of Nazareth.

It’s one thing to read the Bible; it’s another to know the Bible;

and it’

s another to recite texts by memory. But do you know the

Lord revealed in the Bible? What are ways in which you can read

the Bible in order to come away from it knowing God better?

FRIDAY

May 1

Further Study:

“Many are the ways in which God is seeking to

make Himself known to us and bring us into communion with Him.

Nature speaks to our senses without ceasing. The open heart will be

impressed with the love and glory of God as revealed through the

works of His hands. The listening ear can hear and understand the com-

munications of God through the things of nature. The green fields, the

lofty trees, the buds and flowers, the passing cloud, the falling rain, the

babbling brook, the glories of the heavens, speak to our hearts, and

invite us to become acquainted with Him who made them all.”—Ellen G.

White, Steps to Christ, p. 85. Read this entire chapter in Steps to

Christ, titled “A Knowledge of God” (pp. 85–91).

Discussion Questions:

● To what extent does nature help us find God? Does nature

teach us anything about the God of the Bible, or does it merely

impress us that there must be Something or Someone out there?

● In class, talk about the importance of following one’s con-

science. Then talk about the dangers that are involved. What are

ways we can help others know if and when they can trust the

prompting of their conscience?

● What role do culture and upbringing have on the shaping of

your conscience? In what ways has your culture influenced your

concepts of right and wrong? How can you learn to transcend

culture when you need to, that is, when your culture teaches

something that is against the clear teaching of the Word of God?

● If the gift of prophecy is a spiritual gift to God’s church,

should we expect it to play a prominent role in our day and age?

May we expect God to raise up other prophets similar to the way

He called Ellen G. White more than a century ago? Discuss.

● What are ways that we can study the Bible in order to come

away knowing God better? What are ways to study the Bible and

come away not knowing God any more than when we first started

reading?

Summary: God wants to communicate with us. He does so through nature

and b

y speaking through our conscience. Throughout the ages He has

used prophets, and He has made the prophetic gift available even for

His church today. The Bible, God’s Written Word, remains the divine

Guidebook for our pilgrimage. Its focus is on what God has done for

us, most sublimely in entering this world in the Person of His Son, to

which all Scriptures testify.

tor

INSIDE

God’s Stubborn Warrior

by SUSAN CASTILLO

David Ramos is a man of humble origins. Born in Cuba, he finished the

sixth grade before he was taken from school at age 16 to join the Cuban

army. When his commander learned that David was a Seventh-day

Adventist, he did everything he could to force David to give up his faith.

He was mistreated and punished, denied visits from his family, and kept in

solitary confinement. He was subjected to hard labor and was denied

proper food. At one time he was denied food for six days while he was

forced to work hard at night and in the cold.

After each punishment, the guards would offer him a better education,

a good job, and passes to go home if only he renounced his belief in God.

But David refused to give up his faith. And his refusal infuriated his supe-

riors, who dealt him more serious punishment and worse treatment. For

three years David was persecuted and imprisoned for his faith, but he

refused to renounce his Savior.

After leaving the military, David returned home and continued serving

God. He was active in his church, giving Bible studies, preaching, and

bringing others to Jesus.

He rode his bicycle from town to town to visit people and share God’s

love with them. One day as he rode along a highway, he was struck by a

bus and seriously injured. He endured several surgeries and spent months

recovering from his injuries. But instead of feeling bitter, David thanked

God for saving his life.

Then an opportunity opened for David to bring his family to America.

Their first home was in a refugee-style camp in Florida, where Cuban

refugees were housed until they could be processed for immigration.

While living in the camp, David continued his work for God and led many

fellow refugees to the Savior. He often took his aging mother with him in

her wheelchair when he went to study the Bible with someone or to

preach.

Eventually David and his family settled in Oklahoma, where he contin-

ued his mission to share God’s love with his new neighbors. God has

blessed his efforts, and David has been instrumental in establishing a

Spanish church in Oklahoma City.

David still suffers from the effects of the persecution he received while

in the military and the bicycle accident. But he continues working tirelessly

to lead others to Christ. He is a stubborn warrior in the army of God.

Your mission offerings help make it possible for thousands to hear the

gospel and choose to follow the Savior.

SUSAN CASTILLO is an X-ray technologist and medical assistant. She and her pastor hus-

band live in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA.

Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission.

Web site: www.adventistmission.org

L ESSON

*May 2–8

Sin

SABBATH AFTERNOON

Read for This Week’s Study:

Isa. 14:12–14, Matt.

23:23, 25:45, Phil. 2:6–8, Heb. 1:1–5, Rev. 5:9–12.

Memory Text:

“Just as the result of one trespass was condem-

nation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness

was justification that brings life for all men” (Romans 5:18, NIV).

he solid optimism of former generations that everything in the

world will get better and better no longer rings true today. Even

after the cold war, the world is far from being a safe place. The

threat of terrorism has made us all feel extremely vulnerable. Science,

which was supposed to be the harbinger of a better world, now threat-

ens to wreak havoc on that world. The common sources of energy are

being depleted. The icecaps are melting. Crime is a sad fact of life

everywhere. Human beings show little, if any, signs of moral improve-

ment over past generations. The gap between rich and poor constantly

is widening. Our daily installment of news almost invariably tells us

about atrocities and moral decay. No wonder someone once said that

the Christian teaching of human sinfulness is one teaching that is eas-

ily verifiable. That is, that’s one doctrine we don’t need to take on

faith.

Yet, as bad as sin is, it’s not the end of the story. Sure, sin is real, but

so is divine grace.

The Week at a Glance:

Sin, and the results of sin, are a

painful reality in human life. Thank God for Jesus, who has made

a way of escape for us all.

*Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, May 9.

SUNDAY

May 3

Sin Is Rebellion

What is the essence of sin? How does the Bible define it? First John

3:4 (NIV) states, “Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is

lawlessness.” The New Living Translation reads, “Sin opposes the

law,” while the traditional KJV rendering defines sin as “transgression

of the law.” But it is not just any law that humanity has broken—it is

God’s law. Humans have rebelled against their Maker, pretending that

they themselves are the measure of all things rather than in humble

trust submitting to the wisdom and love of God.

What

do the following Bible passages reveal about the essence of sin?

Gen. 3:1–7, Isa. 14:12–14, Rev. 12:7–9.

____________________________________________________________________

Why did God punish Adam and Eve for what seemed to be an

insignificant matter? It may have seemed unimportant, but there was

a crucial principle involved. “There was nothing poisonous in the fruit

itself, and the sin was not merely in yielding to appetite. It was distrust

of God’s goodness, disbelief of His word, and rejection of His author-

ity, that made our first parents transgressors, and that brought into the

world a knowledge of evil. It was this that opened the door to every

species of falsehood and error.”—Ellen G. White, Education, p. 25.

What

will be a major characteristic of God’s people in the time of the

end? Rev. 14:12. How does the issue of obedience come into play

here?

____________________________________________________________________

God has done for us all that infinite love could. In return He asks of

us love and obedience. In a time in which the world is plagued by ram-

pant lawlessness and a relativistic philosophy—which claims that

good and evil depend simply on cultural circumstances and commu-

nal and personal preferences—there must and will be a people who

will staunchly defend God’s standard of holiness, the Ten

Commandments.

We tend to think of rebellion as an outright attack and rejection

of authority. Yet, it can come in much more subtle forms. How

could you tell if, perhaps, you yourself are harboring some

rebellious attitudes toward God?

MONDAY

May 4

Missing the Mark

The seriousness of sin is often played down. “Ah, we cannot all be

perfect!” people say. But sin is serious business. “The full seriousness

of sin can only become apparent when we have understood the full

potentialities of human existence as created in the image of God.”

—John Macquarrie, Principles of Christian Theology (London: SCM

Press, 1966), p. 238.

Sin does not only have to do with wrongfully committed acts. It also

includes the desire and the fantasizing about things that we know are

wrong (Matt. 5:28).

What

have you fantasized about in the past 24 hours? Would you be

ashamed to have those thoughts made public? What should your

answer tell you about where your heart is? See Rom. 8:6.

There also is a category of sin that usually is referred to as “sins of

omission.” This refers to the willful neglect of duty, the conscious

refusal to do something one knows ought to be done.

Matthew 23:23 and Matthew 25:45 we find statements made by

Jesus that deal with sins of omission. Read these verses in their

context. What are the implications of these statements?

___________________________________________________________________

Also

in chapter 25 of Matthew’s Gospel, we find the parable of the tal-

ents (vss. 14–28). What happened to the servant who had hidden

his one talent? What is the significance of this for our discussion?

___________________________________________________________________

We all have been given certain talents. It is part of the concept of

stewardship that we utilize our talents to the full. We must answer to

God for what we fail to do with what He has given us. Let us remem-

ber the words of the apostle Peter: “Each one should use whatever gift

he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace

in its various forms” (1 Pet. 4:10, NIV).

Sins of omission, sins of thought—who hasn’t been guilty of

them all? Dwell on the promise of forgiveness that we can have

in Jesus. Why should this mean so much to us?

TUESDAY

May 5

“Original” Sin

Theologians often distinguish between the sinful acts that we com-

mit and the sinful nature that we possess. We all have been corrupted

by Adam’s fall; we all are deemed sinners even before we sin. The

widespread rite of infant baptism is linked closely with the acknowl-

edgment of this belief. The idea is that a newborn child who dies with-

out having been baptized will be lost eternally because the child is a

sinner, and if this sinfulness is not somehow taken care of, the child

loses eternal life.

There is no scriptural support for this practice, nor for the idea that

a child who dies is automatically condemned to destruction. Now, it is

true that the “original” sin of Adam and Eve has had all-pervasive

consequences that impact everyone. Sin entered the world through

one person, and through this sin death came to “all men” (Rom. 5:12,

NIV).

How

does the apostle Paul describe the powerful tendencies toward sin-

ful behavior with which all of us are born? Rom. 8:7, 8; 7:21–24. How

have you experienced the reality of these tendencies in your own life?

___________________________________________________________________

Through the ages some Christians have declared that they achieved

a state of perfection. Yet, those who claim perfection delude them-

selves. It is contrary to the clear words of Scripture. Quoting Psalm

106:6, Paul stated, “ ‘There is no one righteous, not even one!’ ” (Rom.

3:10, NIV). His fellow apostle John is just as adamant: “If we claim to

be without sin, we deceive ourselves” (1 John 1:8, NIV).

“Sanctification is not the work of a moment, an hour, or a day. It is

a continual growth in grace. We know not one day how strong will be

our conflict the next. Satan lives, and is active, and every day we need

to earnestly cry to God for help and strength to resist him. As long as

Satan reigns we shall have self to subdue, besetments to overcome,

and there is no stopping place. There is no point to which we can come

and say we have fully attained.”—Ellen G. White Comments, The

SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 7, p. 947.

Suppose you reached a point where you truly had victory over

sin; that is, you weren’t committing any known sin. More so, you

were always kind, loving, generous, and living in accordance

with all the light you had. Suppose you “perfectly” reflected the

character of Jesus. Why, though, would you still need a Savior

whose righteousness alone can allow you to stand with “no con-

demnation” (Rom. 8:1) before God?

WEDNESDAY

May 6

Corporate Versus Personal Sin?

Ever since the Fall, the world has been tainted by sin. The results of

sin are visible in nature. They are visible also in wars, in the evil of

slavery and other forms of exploitation, and also in the ways in which

we ravage natural resources. The world of the past and of the present

is full of materialism, egotism, injustice, and perversion.

These facts raise many difficult questions. Foremost among these is

whether we as individuals carry any responsibility for these things and

if we should assume any guilt for this corporate state of sinfulness.

The following considerations may help us to deal with this dilemma.

1. Consider how corporate wrongs in our world may be seen against

the background of the great controversy. “Behind the rise and fall of

nations and the play and counterplay of human interests lies the

unseen struggle between the Godhead, together with the host of loyal

angels, and Satan with his hosts of fallen angels—a struggle that

directly impacts all human activity.”—Frank Holbrook, “The Great

Controversy,” in Raoul Dederen, ed., Handbook of Seventh-day

Adventist Theology (Hagerstown, Md.: Review and Herald

Publishing Association, 2000), p. 995.

2. Consider the totally destructive nature of sin. Sin wants to destroy

everything that has any value. Sin and death are synonymous, and they

are everywhere. There is, therefore, no hope for this world without

divine intervention, because the powers of sin and death far exceed

our human abilities to deal with them.

3. But also consider that we all have some influence. We can all

make small decisions that at times may increase or diminish, however

slightly, the evil in this world. We can work for peace and justice. We

can do acts of compassion. We can choose to cooperate with all who

want to protect the environment. What do such passages as

Ecclesiastes 9:10, Luke 16:10, and Philippians 4:8, 9 contribute to our

understanding of this issue?

It’s so easy just to throw your arms up in despair and say, “The

prob

lems are too great. What can little, old me do to help?”

Nevertheless, how should the example of Jesus and the good He

did healing the sick and comforting the poor (which, consider-

ing all the sick and the poor in the world at that time, was com-

paratively small) influence our decisions to try to make the

world a better place?

THURSDAY

May 7

The Only Solution for the Sin Problem

There is no easy or cheap solution to the sin problem. Sin cannot be

overcome by human determination and perseverance. Sin is larger

than we are. The solution must therefore also supersede our possibili-

ties. There is a lot of confusion among people about the issue of sal-

vation. Many claim there are many different roads to the kingdom.

The roads differ, they say, but they all lead to the same destination.

But they are wrong.

What

is the clear testimony of Scripture regarding the one and only

road toward salvation? John 10:7, 14:6, Acts 4:12.

We do not know who will enter through the gates of the kingdom.

Thank God, that decision is in the hands of the One to whom judgment

has been given, the One who is love and justice personified. But we

do know one thing: Those who receive eternal life do so only because

Christ died for them. Some may never have had the privilege of learn-

ing about their Savior. But that takes nothing away from the fact that

if they are saved it will be through the name of Christ, even if they

have never themselves heard that name.

Why

was Jesus the only One who could save fallen humanity? Phil.

2:6–8, Heb. 1:1–5, Rev. 5:9–12.

“The divine Son of God was the only sacrifice of sufficient value to

fully satisfy the claims of God’s perfect law. . . . Upon Christ no

requirements were laid. He had power to lay down His life, and to take

it again. No obligation was laid upon Him to undertake the work of

atonement. It was a voluntary sacrifice that He made. His life was of

sufficient value to rescue man from his fallen condition.

“The Son of God was in the form of God, and He thought it not rob-

bery to be equal with God. He was the only one, who as a man walked

the earth, who could say to all men, Who of you convinceth me of sin?

He had united with the Father in the creation of man, and He had

power through His own divine perfection of character to atone for

man’s sin, and to elevate him, and bring him back to his first estate.”

—Ellen G. White, Lift Him Up, p. 24.

Think of just how bad sin must be that it cost so much, the death

of Jesus Himself, in order to atone for it. How can keeping this

amazing truth before you help you in your own struggle with

sin?

FRIDAY

May 8

Further Study:

Read Ellen G. White, “The Fall of Satan,” “The

Fall of Man,” and “The Plan of Salvation,” pp. 145–153, in Early

Writings. These three short chapters are about the origin of sin in

hea

ven and on earth and about the first revelation of the plan of sal-

vation.

Discussion Questions:

● As Seventh-day Adventists, we know that the world is not going

to get better but worse—much worse, in fact. The question is,

How are we to relate to the world’s problems? Do we just shrug

them off, saying, “Well, God said that things were going to be

bad, and they are, so what can we do about them?” Or do we get

so involved in trying to solve the world’s problems that we forget

our calling to point people to the only solution: that is, Jesus

Christ, who died for our sins and is coming back? How do we

strike the right balance?

● Should our church be clearer in its condemnation of the cor-

porate evils in this world? Or would this have little impact and

only detract from the commission to take the gospel to every indi-

vidual? At the same time, if we keep quiet about many of these

big issues, where is our moral credibility?

● Of all the horrible effects of sin, death has to be the worst.

Absolutely nothing we as humans can do can reverse it. Sin has

had such devastating effects that only the supernatural interven-

tion of God can solve it. What should that tell us about how

important it is that we strive against sin with all our God-given

strength?

● As Seventh-day Adventists, central to our understanding of the

whole question of sin and evil is the great controversy scenario,

the idea that onlooking intelligences from other worlds are

watching what is happening here and seeing how God will deal

with sin and its consequences. Imagine being a sinless being from

another part of the universe who has seen what sin has done to

us. What would they see? What would they be thinking? What

lessons might they be learning from what they see us going

through here? Imagine how incomprehensible and irrational

some of our actions must seem to them.

Summary: Sin has infected all spheres of life. We are faced with the real-

ity of something that f

ar exceeds our ability to deal with. But it does

not exceed the power and the love of God. He has decisively dealt with

the sin problem in His Son, Jesus Christ.

INSIDE

Ministry on the River Bank

by DANIEL JIAO

Brother Chen is 92 years old and a retired piano tuner. But he’s not

retired from God’s work. A few years ago he and his wife moved to her

hometown in China. There they began sharing their faith with their neigh-

bors, and a few people started coming to their home to worship on

Sabbath, in spite of the government’s warning that this was illegal.

Brother Chen spent his own money to print some tracts and pamphlets.

Every day he sits on a stool on the walkway beside the river that runs

through his town. He chats with people who pass by and gives those who

seem interested a tract or a pamphlet. If the person responds to the litera-

ture or to Brother Chen’s testimony, he invites them to his small apartment

on Sabbath to worship.

Mae had seen Brother Chen sitting beside the river every day. One day

she stopped to talk to him and soon learned that he was a Christian, and

she wanted to know more. After several conversations, she accepted

Chen’s invitation to visit his house group, and eventually she was baptized.

Another couple met him at the river and began listening to his testi-

mony. They were moved by God’s love, and soon they too were baptized.

Eventually this couple became Global Mission pioneers. Today they are

helping to establish the church that meets in the Chens’ home.

When the little group grew too large for the tiny apartment Chen and his

wife were renting, Brother Chen found a larger apartment, one that would

seat 50 people. He wanted to buy it, but all he had was the money he had

saved for his funeral. He stepped out in faith and bought the apartment.

Chen’s money was not enough to pay for the apartment, so a business

friend responded by paying a large sum toward the apartment, and a newly

baptized couple sold a family heirloom and donated the money to pur-

chase the apartment-church. Together the believers were able to pay for the

apartment. Brother Chen, concerned that upon his death the apartment

would be taken from the church, registered the apartment in the church’s

name instead of his own.

Currently some twenty people worship in the apartment-church each

week. And Brother Chen still sits on a chair on the riverside ready with a

smile and a tract and a few words about his friend Jesus. And the Global

Mission pioneers who work with him follow up on interests Brother Chen

meets during his riverside outreach.

DANIEL JIAO is a director of Chinese Ministry in Southwest China.

Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission.

Web site: www.adventistmission.org

tor

L ESSON

*May 9–15

Grace

SABBATH AFTERNOON

Read for This Week’s Study:

Exod. 25:8; Isaiah 53;

Rom. 5:18, 19; 2 Cor. 3:16–18; Eph. 2:4–10; Titus 2:11–14.

Memory Text:

“But God commendeth his love toward us, in

that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).

uring a British conference on comparative religions, experts

from around the world debated what, if any, belief was unique

to the Christian faith. They began eliminating possibilities.

Incarnation? Other religions had different versions of gods appearing in

human form. Resurrection? Again, other religions had accounts of

returns from death. The debate went on for some time until Christian

writer C. S. Lewis wandered into the room. “ ‘What’s the rumpus

about?’ he asked and heard in reply that his colleagues were discussing

Christianity’s unique contribution among world religions. Lewis

responded, ‘Oh, that’s easy. It’s grace.’ ”—Philip Yancey, What’s So

Amazing About Grace? (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan Publishing

House, 1997), p. 45.

Last week we were confronted with the dreadful phenomenon of

sin, the “secret power of lawlessness” (2 Thess. 2:7, NIV). In the final

section we saw that through divine intervention a solution has been

provided. What that intervention was, and what it accomplished for

us, will be the focus of this week’s study.

The Week at a Glance:

What are some of the images God

uses to teach us the plan of salvation? What is atonement? How cen-

tral is the concept of substitution to our understanding of the Cross?

* Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, May 16.

SUNDAY

May 10

God Provides Salvation

The story of how Abraham’s loyalty was tested is well known. God

asked him to sacrifice his son Isaac. Unaware of what God had told

his father to do, and thinking that they were simply going to offer a

sacrifice somewhere, Isaac asked why they had not taken an animal

with them. Abraham then replied with the prophetic words that found

their echo throughout the pages of the Old, as well as the New

Testament: “ ‘God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offer-

ing’ ” (Gen. 22:8, NIV).

What

was the prophetic significance of Abraham’s words to his son?

____________________________________________________________________

Where

else in the Old Testament do we find texts that point to the

redemption that was to come through Christ? What are those

texts, and what do they say? See, for example, Gen. 3:15, Exod.

25:8, Isaiah 53.

____________________________________________________________________

Jesus Christ is the center of the Old Testament. Indeed, the whole

purpose of the earthly sanctuary service was to point to the coming of

the Messiah (see Hebrews 8, 9). Everything prior to His entrance into

the world was a mere prelude to the Cross. God waited until the right

moment. Then, when “the time had fully come” (Gal. 4:4, NIV),

Christ came to live among us.

“Through every age, through every hour, the love of God had been

exercised toward the fallen race. Notwithstanding the perversity of

men, the signals of mercy had been continually exhibited. And when

the fullness of the time had come, the Deity was glorified by pouring

upon the world a flood of healing grace that was never to be

obstructed or withdrawn till the plan of salvation should be ful-

filled.”—Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, p. 37.

Think how many long centuries had passed between the prom-

ises of the coming Messiah and His coming. What should that

tell us—beings who usually live only eighty short years or so at

best—about patience, about trusting in God though things seem

to take so long?

MONDAY

May 11

Pictures of the Miracle of Grace

How do you explain to a three-year-old child what electricity is?

How do you explain to those deep in the African jungles, who have

never traveled more than 25 miles from where they live, what traffic

lights are for and how an elevator works? How can a physicist ever

hope to explain Einstein’s relativity theory to a person whose education

remained limited to elementary school? God faced a communication

gap that went far beyond these examples of human communication

barriers. The divine love demonstrated in the life and death of Jesus

Christ cannot be captured fully in human words. Yet, God wanted us to

have an adequate idea of what is involved in His plan of salvation.

God inspired the authors of the Scriptures to use a number of differ-

ent word-pictures, each of which gives us further insight into the mys-

tery of His grace. None of these images should be used in isolation

from the other perspectives. Taken together, however, they will leave

us with a sense of wonder and immense gratitude.

What

is one of the most prominent word-pictures God used to help us

catch some profound glimpses of the mystery of grace? Isa. 53:7,

John 1:29.

What

other symbolism is used to illustrate a further dimension of the

truth of the atonement? Matt. 20:28, Acts 20:28, 1 Cor. 6:20.

We must be careful not to use one particular symbol to the exclu-

sion of other word-pictures. When we combine everything that is said

about the atonement, we arrive at as full a picture as we finite human

beings can absorb. Nevertheless, the image of a ransom, of a high

price paid for us, is a powerful one. “Christ redeemed us from sin, that

is, He bought us back from sin. . . . What the metaphor intends is that

(a) the means of our salvation is costly and that (b) we have passed

from one state to another—from the state of slavery to the state of

nearness to God. A redemption means the passing over of ownership

at a cost.”—Edward W. H. Vick, Let Me Assure You (Mountain View,

Calif.: Pacific Press

Publishing Association, 1968), p. 33.

Dwell on the implications of this idea that the Creator of the

universe, the One who made all that is (John 1:1–3), voluntarily

went to the cross as the only means of saving us from eternal

ruin. Why should the reality of this truth heavily influence how

we live? Think how foolish it is to let anything earthly turn us

away from the Cross.

TUESDAY

May 12

What Happened at Calvary?

There is a lot of discussion among theologians about the doctrine of

atonement. Two main concepts are promoted. Some opt for an objec-

tive view of the atonement while others defend a subjective view.

What does this mean? The first school of thought emphasizes that

something actually occurred at a historical point in time on a hill just

outside of Jerusalem, a concrete, historical event that provided the

basis for our salvation. Other theologians underline the fact that our

response to the demonstration of Jesus’ love and self-sacrifice on the

cross is the crucial point: We are changed when we contemplate a love

so great! Both perspectives are true and, understood together, comple-

ment each other.

How

does the Bible explain the relationship between what Christ did

for us and what we as sinful beings, in fact, deserve? Isa. 53:4, 5;

Rom. 5:18, 19.

____________________________________________________________________

The idea that Jesus Christ died in our place, so that we will not suf-

fer eternal death but become partakers of the life that He offers, is usu-

ally referred to as the concept of substitution. To many this is an

abhorrent idea. They do not like the legalistic language often used or

the concept of divine wrath against sin. But whatever we may like or

dislike, the grandiose truth is that God has dealt with the sin problem

in the way He decided was suitable. Being just, He could not ignore

sin; being love, He could not abandon the sinner. We should have paid

the penalty of eternal death ourselves because we are the guilty ones.

But Jesus was willing to take our place! That’s what happened at the

cross. This actual event, that of His substitution in our stead, became

the basis for our redemption.

Then, as a result of what Christ has done for us, as a response to His

substitution in our place, we are drawn to Him, we respond to Him, we

change our attitude toward Him and other humans beings, as well.

This is the complementary, subjective side to the plan of salvation

(John 12:32, Rom. 5:1).

Think about all the bad things you have done and (perhaps)

might still do. Then realize that Jesus, at the cross, suffered the

punishment that you deserve for those actions. How do you feel,

knowing that He suffered in your stead? What should your

response be, knowing what Jesus went through on your behalf?

WEDNESDAY

May 13

A Change of Heart

The unparalleled manifestation of divine compassion and grace on

Calvary has changed millions of hearts. From the very moment He

hung dying on the cross, people were changed by beholding the love

of Christ. One of the criminals crucified with Him noticed that Jesus

was someone special, with a future beyond this ignominious death

(Luke 23:39–43). And even the Roman centurion noticed that Jesus

was no criminal (vs. 47).

How

should our lives be changed by beholding Jesus and what He has

done for us? 2 Cor. 3:16–18; Heb. 12:2, 3.

____________________________________________________________________

“Let the repenting sinner fix his eyes upon ‘the Lamb of God, which

taketh away the sin of the world’ (John 1:29); and by beholding, he

becomes changed. His fear is turned to joy, his doubts to hope.

Gratitude springs up. The stony heart is broken. A tide of love sweeps

into the soul. Christ is in him a well of water springing up unto ever-

lasting life. When . . . we behold Him in Gethsemane, sweating great

drops of blood, and on the cross dying in agony—when we see this,

self will no longer clamor to be recognized. Looking unto Jesus, we

shall be ashamed of our coldness, our lethargy, our self-seeking. We

shall be willing to be anything or nothing, so that we may do heart

service for the Master.”—Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, pp. 439,

440; italics supplied.

How

well do her words reflect your own experience with Christ?

What could be holding you back from a deeper experience with

Him? How much time do you spend contemplating Calvary?

Theologians propose various theories of the atonement. But when

everything is said and done, there is no one theory or combination of

theories that will do justice to the marvel of God’s grace (see 1 Cor.

1:20–25). It is good to talk together about the passages of Scripture

that reveal different aspects of Jesus’ sacrifice. But what Jesus did for

us should be not only a topic of debate but prayerfully contemplated

and experienced. Though there’s much we can’t understand, we have

been given enough so that we should marvel at what God has done for

us in Christ.

THURSDAY

May 14

Christ Our Salvation

It’s easy for Christians to get sidetracked. For some, the focus of

their faith is either on the Bible, or on the church, or on the traditions

or doctrines of their church. While all these have their role, they can

be very problematic if they turn us away from Jesus, who alone is the

Source of our salvation.

As Seventh-day Adventists, we often refer to the “truth” as the focus

of our faith. There is nothing wrong with that, as long as we do not

reduce our concept of truth to a list of doctrines to which we intellectu-

ally ascribe. Our faith should find its center in the truth as we find it in

Jesus. We believe in a Person who has revealed our God to us, who has

come to redeem us, who presently is our heavenly Mediator, and who

will return to take us home. This must be of primary importance to us.

What

do such passages as Ephesians 2:4–10 and Titus 2:11–14 teach

us about the centrality of Christ in our faith?

____________________________________________________________________

Ephesians 2:4–10 is an extraordinarily rich passage. It underlines sev-

eral times that we are saved by grace. This grace is described as “incom-

parable riches” (vs. 6, NIV), which issue from God’s “great love for us”

(vs. 4, NIV). This grace is gratis, free. It cannot be earned. Our works

do not bring us eternal life. If they did, we would have reason to boast

about our own goodness. It is God’s grace that will bring visible changes

in our daily lives and that will enable us to do “good” works (vs. 10).

But even these good deeds are, essentially, God’s work in us.

What

magnificent description of the centrality of Jesus Christ to our

faith do we find in Paul’s words as recorded in Acts 17:28? See

also Gal. 2:16–20.

____________________________________________________________________

How should the doctrines we have as Adventists help us better

under

stand what Christ has done for us? Suppose, for instance,

that you believed in eternal torment in hell. How would that, or

other false teachings, impact your understanding of Christ?

Why then are correct doctrines so important in helping us come

to know Jesus better?

FRIDAY

May 15

Further Study:

The book Seventh-day Adventists will almost

automatically refer to when asked about the atoning work of Christ is

Ellen G. White’s The Desire of Ages. Chapters 78 and 79 (pp.

741–768) are particularly relevant in the context of this week’s study.

Note the statement on page 751: “As Jesus, crucified with the thieves,

was placed ‘in the midst,’ so His cross was placed in the midst of a

world lying in sin. And the words of pardon spoken to the penitent

thief kindled a light that will shine to the earth’s remotest bounds.”

Discussion Questions:

● Some people are offended by the idea that God demanded the

life of His Son as a “payment” for the sins of humankind. That,

though, is one of the images used by the Bible, so we must take it

for what it says. What should the image tell us about the serious-

ness of sin and how costly our redemption was?

● If there is one doctrine many contemporary people object to,

it is the atonement. Many do not accept the idea that our prob-

lem should be solved by an intervention from the “outside.”

Should not each person accept responsibility for what he or she

has done? How do you explain the need for divine intervention to

such people? Also, ask these people about the problem of death.

How is that problem going to be solved if not by divine interven-

tion?

● Those who are saved by grace must also show grace to those

around them. How do we as individuals show that our lives are

embedded in grace? How does a church model this divine grace?

● Why is the “subjective” side of the Cross so important, as

well? That is, how should the realization of Christ’s death for us

change us? What should it teach us about forgiveness, about

humility, about patience, about love for the unlovable? What are

some concrete and practical ways we can reveal the reality of

what the Cross means to us?

Summary: Theologians have developed many theories about the atone-

ment. Most are deficient or at least one-sided. They may be compared

with pictures taken from different sides of the Himalayas. They all

show the mountains but do not provide a complete picture. The mira-

cle of grace must not be reduced to a formula to which we give intel-

lectual assent. It is the ground of our faith. Christ died for us so that

we can have eternal life. Without Him, we are lost. With Him as our

Savior, our future is secure.

INSIDE

Ooha’s Fervent Faith

by Y. S. METHUSELAH

Eight-year-old Ooha looked longingly out the door of her grandmother’s

small house in the village of Venkatapuram, in southeastern India. She

scanned the empty plot of land across the road and then closed her eyes in

prayer. Ooha, like the other new believers in her village, has a wish. No,

it’s more than a wish; it’s a passion. She wants to worship God in a church,

a real church.

When Adventist lay workers held evangelistic meetings in Ooha’s vil-

lage, hundreds of people attended. And when they were invited to follow

Jesus, many left their other gods and accepted Jesus as their Lord and

Savior. Their faith is fervent, and their determination to be true to God’s

commandments is strong. Every Sabbath and often during the week they

gather in homes to worship and pray, for they, like many congregations

throughout India, have no church in which to worship.

The church members are farmers. They don’t earn a lot. But they give

what they can to buy bricks for the church that one day will stand in the

empty lot. Progress is slow, and others in their village—mostly non-

Christians—urge the new believers to find a stronger god, for their God

must not be very powerful if He cannot provide a temple in which to wor-

ship Him. The believers understand how their neighbors think, but it stings

to hear the words, “Your God must not be strong.”

Ooha hears the words too. She has no money to add to the church’s

building fund, but she is doing her part. Ever since the missionaries told

them about Jesus, Ooha has prayed for a church. Every Sabbath she fasts

and prays for the church that she is sure God will provide. She refuses to

miss a single Sabbath, and she plans to continue fasting and praying until

the church becomes a reality and is dedicated. So on Sabbath, while other

children run after morning worship, Ooha fasts and prays that God will

provide a way for them to have a church in

which to worship and bring their friends to

meet God.

Your mission offerings have helped lead

thousands of people in India to the Savior.

Your Thirteenth Sabbath Offerings have

helped build hundreds of churches there, as

well. Thank you for sharing so that others may

meet Jesus.

OOHA (left). Y. S. METHUSELAH is director of the

Northwest Andhra Region in southeastern India.

Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission.

Web site: www.adventistmission.org

tor

L ESSON

*May 16–22

Rest

SABBATH AFTERNOON

Read for This Week’s Study:

Gen. 2:2, 3; Deut.

5:12–15; Isa. 58:12–14; Ezek. 20:12; Heb. 4:9–11.

Memory Text:

“Then he said to them, ‘The Sabbath was made

for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is Lord even

of the Sabbath’ ” (Mark 2:27, 28, NIV).

f there is anything in the Christian faith relevant for people living

at the beginning of the twenty-first century, it is the Sabbath. It is

the medicine badly needed by millions in societies plagued by

stress, heart problems, and burnout. It offers escape from the never-

ending pressures of modern life. It provides a possibility to recharge

our empty batteries and to refocus on the real priorities in life. The

Sabbath tells us that there is a time to close the door of our home and

our mind to the clutter and noise of the world and to come into the

presence of the One who made us and who knows what we need.

“If there is any command hurried and hassled modern people need, it

is the Sabbath. We are so busy trying to create meaning in our own life

and serving ourselves that we forget that God is the only One who can

give meaning to our lives. We show our ‘resting’ in Him by resting on

His day.”—Jon L. Dybdahl, Exodus, The Abundant Life Bible Amplifier

(Boise, Idaho: Pacific Press

Publishing Association, 1994), p. 186.

The Week at a Glance:

Why is the Sabbath so important

for us? Why did God institute the Sabbath? What is holy time?

Who or what makes the Sabbath holy? How can we make Sabbath

keeping a delightful and meaningful experience?

*Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, May 23.

SUNDAY

May 17

God’s Gift for Busy People

Two basic institutions for all humankind date from the first week of

earth’s history: marriage and the Sabbath. They are an intrinsic part of

the divine program for human happiness. No wonder that both have,

through the ages, been so much under attack from the evil one. God

knew what humanity would need, and He therefore created time with

a perfect cycle of six “normal” days plus one extraordinary day: the

Sabbath. And ever since, those who have respected this divinely insti-

tuted rhythm have been blessed by it.

Why

did God Himself rest on the seventh day after the creation of the

world? Gen. 2:2, 3.

____________________________________________________________________

With

what term does the prophet Ezekiel refer to the Sabbath? What

do you think that means? Ezek. 20:12.

____________________________________________________________________

“After resting upon the seventh day, God sanctified it, or set it apart,

as a day of rest for man. Following the example of the Creator, man

was to rest upon this sacred day, that as he should look upon the heav-

ens and the earth, he might reflect upon God’s great work of creation;

and that as he should behold the evidences of God’s wisdom and

goodness, his heart might be filled with love and reverence for his

Maker.

“God saw that a Sabbath was essential for man, even in Paradise. He

needed to lay aside his own interests and pursuits for one day of the

seven, that he might more fully contemplate the works of God and

meditate upon His power and goodness. He needed a Sabbath to

remind him more vividly of God and to awaken gratitude because all

that he enjoyed and possessed came from the beneficent hand of the

Creator.”—Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, pp. 47, 48.

What is your experience with the Sabbath? Do you enjoy it? Do

ou come to a deeper appreciation of God through contemplat-

ing the marvels of His creation? If not, what changes could you

make that could help you have a more fulfilling Sabbath expe-

rience?

MONDAY

May 18

Holy Time

The word holy occurs in the Bible in different settings. People are

sometimes referred to as holy; so are objects or time periods. The core

meaning is “to set aside for a specific use.” Priests were holy people

because they were singled out for service in the sanctuary. They han-

dled holy vessels and instruments, which were withdrawn from secu-

lar use for a specific ritual purpose. Similarly, holy days are marked

by God for a specific purpose. Once they have been singled out as

holy, they are no longer available for common use, because they have

been destined for a higher purpose. The activities on such holy days

must correspond with the purpose God has attached to such days.

must “remember” to keep the Sabbath holy. Do we or does God

make the day holy? What difference does that make? Gen. 2:3, Isa.

58:13.

“The Sabbath is a powerful testimony to the sovereignty of God.

Only he can create, and only he can make something holy. This is why

Adventists object so strongly to the change from Sabbath to Sunday

as the Christian day of rest and worship. Without a clear divine man-

date, such a development is nothing less than an affront to God.”

—Richard Rice, The Reign of God (Berrien Springs, Mich.: Andrews

University Press, 1997), p. 403.

How

does the weekly holy seventh-day Sabbath impact those who

choose to obey the command to keep the Sabbath according to

God’s appointed day of holy time? Exod. 31:12, 13.

Keeping the Sabbath combines internal with external aspects. When

our Sabbath keeping is only a matter of external behavior, following a

list of rules, we have missed its true meaning. But, at the same time,

our Sabbath keeping is visible to others. It tells other people that we

are separate and different. It is a sign of our loyalty to our Creator and

Redeemer.

God wants His people to be “holy”; that is, He wants people who

have consciously separated themselves from the things of this

world. How should keeping the Sabbath help you in a concrete

way to be “separate” from the world? How should the reality of

the approaching Sabbath each week serve as a reminder to you

when facing temptations during the week, that we are supposed

to be a holy people, a people separate from the defiling things of

the world?

TUESDAY

May 19

Experiencing the Joy of the Sabbath

When we talk about the Sabbath commandment, we usually refer to

the version we find in Exodus 20. There the commandment is

anchored in the Creation of the world. Every Sabbath we are reminded

that God is our Creator and that we are His creatures, with all that this

glorious truth implies. But in the version of the Ten Commandments

in the book of Deuteronomy we discover an additional aspect. The

weekly Sabbath is also a commemoration of Israel’s delivery from

Egyptian bondage and thus, by extension, of every kind of slavery

from which God’s grace has set humanity free.

Read

Deuteronomy 5:12–15 carefully and compare it with Exodus

20:8–11. What do they add to each other? How do they comple-

ment each other? Are there possibly still other things we ought to

“remember” in our Sabbath keeping? If so, what might they be?

____________________________________________________________________

The Sabbath is a sign not only of creation but of redemption. It

points us to the salvation we have in Jesus, who not only re-creates us

now (2 Cor. 5:17, Gal. 6:15) but offers the hope of an eternity in a

new heaven and a new earth (2 Pet. 3:13). In fact, the Jews have seen

the Sabbath as a symbol of the “world to come”; that is, the new

heaven and the new earth. It’s a weekly foretaste of what we will have

for eternity and should serve as a special reminder of what we have

been given in Jesus.

On a more practical level, Sabbath helps to free us from the slavery

of the clock and the calendar. Many are slaves of computers and

mobile phones also. For many people it has become incredibly diffi-

cult to separate work time from leisure time. It seems that modern life

requires that we can always be reached and always must be ready to

switch into our work mode. The Sabbath is the perfect antidote to this

disease, which threatens every form of true rest, both physical and

spiritual.

“Setting aside a holy Sabbath means that we can cease our produc-

tivity and accomplishments for one day in every seven. The exciting

thing about such a practice is that it changes our attitudes for the rest

of the week. It frees us up to worry less about how much we produce

on the other days. Furthermore, when we end that futile chasing after

wind, we can truly rest and learn delight in new ways.”—Marva J.

Dawn, Keeping the Sabbath Wholly (Grand Rapids, Mich.: William B.

Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1996), p. 19.

WEDNESDAY

May 20

Modeling Sabbath Rest to the World

Read

Isaiah 58:12–14. What principles can we take away from these

verses about Sabbath keeping that help us better experience the

blessings God has for us if we remember the Sabbath properly?

____________________________________________________________________

It is an extremely unfortunate reality: Many Adventists do not truly

enjoy God’s Sabbath. Some remember with utter frustration the ways

in which the Sabbath was kept in their parental home. Even in

Adventist institutions, Sabbath keeping can leave much to be desired.

Rules and regulations are supposed to ensure that the Sabbath is kept

“holy.” Some of these rules are based on biblical principles, but many

have, in actual fact, more to do with tradition and culture than with a

“Thus says the Lord.”

The Sabbath never must be a day mainly associated with prohibi-

tions and restrictions. If we are looking for a model to follow, we must

let ourselves be inspired by the example of Jesus.

Look

carefully at the following passages and discover how Jesus, our

ultimate Example, kept the seventh-day Sabbath “holy.” Mark

2:23–3:6, Luke 4:16, 6:1–11.

____________________________________________________________________

“Heaven’s work never ceases, and men should never rest from doing

good. The Sabbath is not intended to be a period of useless inactivity.

The law forbids secular labor on the rest day of the Lord; the toil that

gains a livelihood must cease; no labor for worldly pleasure or profit

is lawful upon that day; but as God ceased His labor of creating, and

rested upon the Sabbath and blessed it, so man is to leave the occupa-

tions of his daily life, and devote those sacred hours to healthful rest,

to worship, and to holy deeds. The work of Christ in healing the sick

was in perfect accord with the law. It honored the Sabbath.”—Ellen G.

White, The Desire of Ages, p. 207.

Try to imagine what the “perfect” Sabbath would be like. How

would you keep it? What would be available to you that you

could not have during the workweek? Bring your description to

class on Sabbath.

THURSDAY

May 21

The Sign of Rest

As Sabbath keepers we often are accused of trying to work our way

to heaven by keeping the Sabbath. We hear that all the time. How

should we respond?

Read again the Sabbath commandment in Exodus 20. What does it tell

us to do? It tells us, as well as our sons, our daughters, our servants, our

animals, and even the strangers among us to rest. It’s all about rest.

Now, a simple question: How is it that the one commandment

devoted to rest, the one commandment that specifically expresses rest,

the one commandment that gives us a special opportunity to rest—

how has this been turned into the universal “New Covenant” symbol

of works? The only commandment that, by its nature, is all about rest

has become, for many, the metaphor for salvation by works.

What’s wrong with this picture?

Indeed, far from being a symbol of works, the Sabbath is the Bible’s

eternal symbol of the rest that God’s people have always had in Him.

Read

Hebrews 4:9–11. What is the message to us here about the

Sabbath?

____________________________________________________________________

From the pre-Fall world of Adam and Eve’s Eden to the New

Covenant rest that God’s followers have in Christ’s work of redemp-

tion for them, the Sabbath is a real-time manifestation of the rest that

Christ offers to all. In Matthew 11:28–30, Jesus calls us to rest in Him.

He will give us rest, and that rest finds one expression in His univer-

sal Sabbath day. Anyone can say that they are resting in Christ: anyone

can say that they are saved by grace. But the keeping of the seventh-

day Sabbath is a visible expression of that rest, a living parable of

what it means to be covered by His grace. Our weekly rest from our

secular, worldly works stands as a symbol of our rest in the completed

work of Jesus for us.

Our obedience to this commandment is a way of saying, “We’re so

sure of our salvation in Jesus, we’re so firm and secure in what Christ

has done for us, that we can—in a special way—rest from any of our

works because we know what Christ has accomplished for humanity

through His death and resurrection.”

Sabbath is a very real, very expressive, very visible expression and

manifestation of the rest that we have in Jesus and what He has done

for us. We don’t have to say it; we can express it in a real way, a way

that those who don’t keep the Sabbath can’t.

FRIDAY

May 22

Further Study:

Read the comments made by Ellen G. White on

the giving of the Ten Commandment law in Patriarchs and Prophets,

pp. 303–310, and on the story about Jesus’ Sabbath keeping together

with His disciples in The Desire of Ages, pp. 281–289.

A rich source for additional information is, Walter F. Specht, “The

Sabbath in the New Testament,” in Kenneth A. Strand, ed., The

bbath in Scripture and History (Washington, D.C.: Review and

Herald

Publishing Association, 1982), pp. 92–113.

Note in particular this passage: “In Mark’s account (chap. 2:27), Jesus

then raised the issue of the purpose of the Sabbath. The Sabbath was not

an end in itself. . . . It was designed to be a blessing to man, a day of

physical rest, but also a day devoted to spiritual exercises. The Pharisees

treated the day as though man were created to serve the Sabbath, rather

than the Sabbath meeting the needs of man. R. Shim‘on ben Menasya

about A.D. 180 made a similar statement [to the statement made by

Jesus]: ‘The Sabbath is given over to you but you are not surrendered

to the Sabbath.’ ”—Page 96.

Discussion Questions:

● In class, compare your descriptions of what a “perfect”

Sabbath would be like. What can you do to come as close as pos-

sible to that ideal?

● Earlier in the week it was suggested that some of the rules and

restrictions we apply to the Sabbath are rooted more in tradition

than in the Word of God. As a class, discuss what these human-

made rules might be, as opposed to what the Bible says. How can

we know the difference?

● Dwell more on the idea expressed in Thursday’s lesson. How

can we better show the world that the special rest that we enjoy

in Jesus through the Sabbath reveals the reality of Christ’s grace

in our lives? What things might we have done that give others the

wrong impression?

Summary: The Sabbath is God’s gift to humanity. It is the perfect antidote

for today’s restlessness and stress. It is a very specific weekly amount

of time that God has made “holy” for us. The day can, if approached

with the right attitude, be a source of physical and spiritual rest and a

time of great joy. The ultimate Example of true Sabbath keeping is

Jesus, who referred very significantly to Himself as the Lord of the

Sabbath.

INSIDE

The Attack That Saved a Life

by SILILE FEIN MAZIBISA

It was Saturday evening, and Thabani was walking home from choir

practice with his friend, Thomas. Thomas wasn’t an Adventist, but he

enjoyed spending time with Thabani.

As the teenagers walked down the quiet street in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe,

they heard footsteps behind them. But they paid little attention, for they

were in a safe neighborhood—they thought. Suddenly four men raced

toward them and attacked Thabani. Three grabbed him while the fourth

searched his pockets for valuables.

Thomas ran shouting for help, but no one would open their door.

Thabani tried to shake off the men and run, but his attackers held him

tightly. In the struggle, one of the assailants stabbed Thabani behind his

ear. Finally Thabani broke away and stumbled toward Thomas, who had

found someone to help them. When the assailants saw another man com-

ing to help the boys, they ran away.

Thabani was bleeding from his head wound, so Thomas helped him

walk the remaining block to his house. His brother drove them to the near-

est clinic. At the clinic the medical personnel directed him to go to a hos-

pital, but in their panic the brothers had locked the car keys in the car.

While they tried to decide what to do, a physician approached them. He

had just finished his shift at the clinic and offered to take them to the hos-

pital. They arrived at the hospital, and the physician led them to a room

where he treated Thabani’s injuries. He then told Thabani that he could

return home.

The boys thanked the doctor and explained that they had no money to

pay him. The doctor told Thabani not to worry, that he would not charge

for the care. Thanking the man once more, the boys returned home.

When Thabani’s parents returned home, he told them what had hap-

pened. The family tried to locate the doctor who had treated their son at

no charge, but no one at the clinic or the hospital knew of a doctor that fit

Thabani’s description. “Perhaps you were treated by an angel,” his mother

said reverently.

Thomas was deeply impressed that God had cared for his friend in such

a remarkable manner. Although he attended a church that focused on heal-

ings and miracles, Thomas began to worship with Thabani at the Adventist

church. Recently Thomas was baptized, and the two friends sing God’s

praises together as brothers in faith.

Your mission offerings reach virtually every country in the world with

the message of God’s love and salvation. Thank you!

SILILE FEIN MAZIBISA is Thabani’s sister. They are the children of an Adventist pastor in

Bulawayo, Zimbabwe.

Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission.

Web site: www.adventistmission.org

tor

L ESSON

*May 23–29

Heaven

SABBATH AFTERNOON

Read for This Week’s Study:

Eccles. 9:5, 6; Col.

1:10–14; 1 Thess. 4:13–18; Rev. 21:1–4, 8.

Memory Text:

“ ‘In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it

were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a

place for you. . . . I will come back and take you to be with me’ ”

(John 14:2, 3, NIV).

or many the word heaven has become meaningless, a concept

that belongs to the realm of fairy tales. We delude ourselves, they

say, if we think there is some kind of life beyond this earthly exis-

tence. Some go so far as to say that it is positively wrong to tell people

that there is a heaven. They argue that it keeps people from putting all

their efforts into what they could achieve in life here and now.

Even many Christians struggle with the concept. They are not so

sure that heaven is a real place. Should heaven, rather, be interpreted

as a state of mind ? On the other hand, there are many who believe that

at death the soul is released and enters heaven to live with God. They

are confident that their father, mother, husband, wife, or child—who

has preceded them in death—is now with God in heaven and that a

few years at most separate them from a reunion with their loved ones.

What’s the truth on this important topic?

The Week at a Glance:

Why is the promise of heaven so

important to us? What will life be like there? How can we experi-

ence a foretaste of it now? What destiny awaits those whose

choices exclude them from heaven?

*Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, May 30.

SUNDAY

May 24

When Do We Get to Heaven?

It is quite astonishing that the idea of an immortal soul—which is

separable from our physical body and which ascends to heaven right

at death—has become so dominant among Christians. Satan cleverly

used the ideas of the Greek philosophers to repeat his lie in Eden:

“ ‘You will not surely die’ ” (Gen. 3:4, NIV).

What

do the following passages teach us about the true nature of

death?

• 1 Kings 11:21

• Ps. 13:3

• Eccles. 9:5, 6

• 1 Cor. 15:51

When we die, we enter into a state of unconsciousness that the Bible

compares to sleep. Unaware of what happens in the world, we await

the morning of the resurrection. Only then will the great multitude of

the redeemed enter heaven to join the very few, such as Enoch and

Elijah, who have preceded them! But it is not going to be a long wait.

The moment we close our eyes in death, the next thing we know will

be Christ at His second coming. In other words, as far as those who

die in Christ are concerned, it will make no difference whether it was

3,000 years ago or the day before Christ returns. They close their eyes

in death, and the next thing they are conscious of is Jesus returning to

get them. It will seem, to them, instantaneous.

What

is the glorious truth about our future entrance into the heav-

enly realm? John 14:1–3, 1 Thess. 4:13–18.

____________________________________________________________________

“In the New Testament the blessed hope never focuses on individ-

ual death, but always on the return of Christ and the resurrection and

translation of the saints to meet Him together, at the same time. It is

in this future, and not what happens at death, that saints can find com-

fort.”—Norman Gulley, Christ Is Coming (Hagerstown, Md.: Review

and Herald

Publishing Association, 1998), pp. 293, 294.

Why is the promise of heaven so important to us? If there were

no heaven and this life were all there was, then what hope does

anyone have at all?

MONDAY

May 25

Heaven or Hell?

Not all people will be saved. Some will be eternally lost. Human

beings have been created with a free will. Someone once expressed it

like this: There are just two kinds of people—those who say, “Lord,

Your will be done,” and those to whom the Lord says, “I have to

respect your choice; your will be done!” In the end, no one asked to

be born. We’re here only because we’ve been created without our con-

sent. God offers us the hope of eternal life, if we choose it. If we don’t,

then we will go back to the nothingness out of which we came. It’s, in

the end, our own choice.

All

humanity awaits one of two ultimate destinies. What are they? Matt.

25:46; John 5:29; Rev 21:1–4, 8.

____________________________________________________________________

Heaven is a reality. It is a place. It is where God lives together with

the other Members of the Godhead and a host of unfallen angels. It

also is where we will live if we remain on God’s side. When Christ

returns and the first resurrection takes place, the resurrected saints

will accompany their Lord to heaven, where they will remain for a

thousand years (Rev. 20:4–6). After the thousand years a series of

events will take place, culminating in the creation of a “new heaven”

and a “new earth” (Rev. 21:1), where the redeemed will then live for-

ever.

But hell also is a reality. The popular belief in a place where sinners

will be tormented and burn for all eternity does not have biblical sup-

port. But neither has the popular idea that in the end all people are

going to be saved. Those who reject the good news of salvation and

refuse to be obedient to God will be judged and condemned and will

face a death from which there is no resurrection ever. Those who

believe that all people will be saved argue that a God of love will not

allow anyone to lose out on eternal bliss. They have a point to the

extent that God is, indeed, love personified and wants to save all men

and women. But tragically, not all people want to be saved. Christ

could not have expressed it any clearer: “ ‘I tell you the truth, whoever

hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will

not be condemned,’ ” but He also added that “ ‘those who have done

evil will rise to be condemned’ ” (John 5:24, 29, NIV).

It remains our choice. Heaven can be ours if we choose to believe

in God and are willing to become disciples of His Son, Jesus Christ.

TUESDAY

May 26

The Kingdom—Now and Then

When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior, we enter into a new kind

of existence. Although still subject to the results of sin—aging, sick-

ness, and the temporary “sleep” of death—we have already, in a very

real sense, received eternal life. It is important never to lose sight of that

crucial fact. We have been born again and have a new life “in Christ.”

Those who have declared their allegiance to Christ are “children” of

God (1 John 3:2, NIV). They have “ ‘crossed over,’ ” Jesus declares,

“ ‘from death to life’ ” (John 5:24, NIV). They have becomes citizens of

the kingdom of God as they have incorporated the kingdom values into

their lives. They now have a different Master, and their ultimate focus is

no longer on the things of this world but on the eternal city.

How

did Jesus express the reality of the citizenship of the kingdom for

His followers even in this world? Luke 17:21, John 14:27.

____________________________________________________________________

What

confirmation of this truth do we find in the words of Paul?

Rom. 14:17, Col. 1:10–14.

____________________________________________________________________

But this is not where it stops. What we experience of the reality of

the heavenly kingdom while we are still on earth is only a foretaste of

the “inheritance” that is to come. It makes us long for more. When

Jesus comes in His glory, “all the nations” will be gathered before

Him (Matt. 25:32, NIV). “ ‘Then the King will say to those on his

right, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance,

the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world” ’ ”

(vs. 34, NIV). That is the moment God’s children have been waiting

for. They will be home at last!

“Better than all the friendship of the world is the friendship of

Christ’s redeemed. Better than a title to the noblest palace on earth is

a title to the mansions our Lord has gone to prepare. And better than

all the words of earthly praise will be the Savior’s words to His faith-

ful servants, ‘Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom pre-

pared for you from the foundation of the world.’ Matt. 25:34.”—Ellen

G. White, Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 374.

Go back over the texts for today. How have you experienced the

reality of what is promised in them? What choices are you mak-

ing that could be hindering you from truly enjoying what Christ

offers you even now?

WEDNESDAY

May 27

Beyond Our Wildest Expectation

Have you ever wondered how it will be in heaven and on the new

earth? Will we recognize each other? Will we have eternal youth?

What will we do when there? Will we have our own occupations? Or

will we only sing God’s praises? Will we travel to other places in the

universe? How much will we remember of our earthly existence? We

are not the first ones to ask such questions!

What

did the Sadducees want to know about the life in the hereafter?

Matt. 22:23–28.

What

did Jesus reply? Matt. 22:29, 30.

The statement of Jesus that is recorded in Matthew 22 was part of a

discussion with the Sadducees. They were a group of Jewish leaders

who denied the possibility of a bodily resurrection. It is clear that it

was not Jesus’ intention to give a full description of the conditions of

eternal life. The context makes clear that Jesus wanted to emphasize

that death has been conquered. He points beyond the reality of death

and resurrection. Those who die are safe in His memory, and He can

therefore still be called the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

Nonetheless, Jesus’ remark also clearly indicates that, in spite of all

continuity, we will be raised with the unique identity that we had in

this temporary life; there also will be plenty of discontinuity.

What

are some of the things we will no longer experience in the earth

made new? Rev. 21:1, 4, 22–27; 22:5.

Those of us who love vacationing on the seaside may be disap-

pointed to learn that the sea will be “no more.” However, to the people

who first heard these words, the sea was a threat. Israel never was a

seafaring nation. For good reasons, it feared the dark depths of the

oceans. And we know from several Gospel stories that even crossing

the Sea of Galilee could be a scary experience. John the revelator tells

us that in the new world that God will create, everything that could pos-

sibly be a threat to us will have been removed and everyone who could

present a danger to us will be absent. We will be eternally secure!

Try to imagine a world without sickness, death, fear, loss, a

world in which we only keep growing in knowledge and love.

What things here give us hints at what it will be like there? Let

your imagination seek to grasp what this new existence will be

like. What are you especially anticipating?

THURSDAY

May 28

Meeting the Lord of Heaven

We have every reason to believe that on the new earth we will be

able to recognize those we knew in this life. Our resurrection bodies

will resemble that of the risen Lord. When He appeared to His fol-

lowers after His resurrection, He clearly was recognizable to those

who had been with Him prior to His death. What an inexpressible joy

it will be to be reunited with those we lost in death. But the supreme

experience will be to meet the Lord of the universe. Our songs will

come true: “Face to face shall [we] behold Him, far beyond the starry

sky!” What a privilege it will be to stand before the Alpha and the

Omega of the universe.

What

assurance do we have that we will meet the Lord of lords? 1 Thess.

4:16, 17; Rev. 21:22, 23.

We cannot yet imagine what it will be like to meet our Savior. How

many questions will we want to ask! The why question, which has so

often been on our lips, finally will receive its definitive answer. We

will at last understand why God permitted particular trials and temp-

tations into our earthly existence. Never again will we doubt God’s

wisdom and goodness. All distrust will dissipate as we learn why God

allowed certain things to take place. And only then will we realize

fully how we have been protected from all kinds of dangers.

What

will be a dominant aspect of eternal life? Rom. 14:11, 1 Tim.

1:17, Rev. 5:13.

Eternal life is singing eternal praises and worshiping the King.

Why? Because He is worthy of our adoration. “That the Maker of all

worlds, the Arbiter of all destinies, should lay aside His glory and

humiliate Himself from love to man will ever excite the wonder and

adoration of the universe. As the nations of the saved look upon their

Redeemer and behold the eternal glory of the Father shining in His

countenance; as they behold His throne, which is from everlasting to

everlasting, and know that His kingdom is to have no end, they break

forth in rapturous song: ‘Worthy, worthy is the Lamb that was slain,

and hath redeemed us to God by His own most precious blood!’ ”

—Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, pp. 651, 652.

What will it be like when you meet Jesus face to face? What do

you think you will say to Him, and why? What do you think

He’ll say to you?

FRIDAY

May 29

For Further Study:

Ellen G. White has written a lot about

heaven and our entrance into the heavenly kingdom. The final chap-

ters of The Great Controversy are a sublime description of what will

be ours. But the compilation The Story of Redemption also captures

this topic admirably. See the last four chapters, pp. 418–433.

“ ‘And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and

the first earth were passed away.’ Rev. 21:1. The fire that consumes the

wicked purifies the earth. Every trace of the curse is swept away. No

eternally burning hell will keep before the ransomed the fearful con-

sequences of sin. One reminder alone remains: our Redeemer will

ever bear the marks of His crucifixion. Upon His wounded head, His

hands and feet, are the only traces of the cruel work that sin has

wrought.”—Ellen G. White, The Story of Redemption, p. 430.

Discussion Questions

● How do we deal with the question of salvation for those who

have never heard the name of Jesus? How should the fact that

Jesus died for the sins of all humanity, even those who never

heard of Him, help us trust that God has not forgotten those folk

either?

● The Bible describes death as a sleep, a state of unconscious-

ness. How can one then explain “near-death” experiences in

which people claim to have seen heavenly beings in a dazzling

light or dead friends and relatives? How can we help these peo-

ple realize that what they experienced might not be what they are

judging it to be? In other words, how can we help them realize

that what they saw couldn’t be what they think it was, no matter

how real it seemed to their senses?

● How have people abused the promise of eternal life in ways

that allowed them to manipulate others for personal or political

gain? What are some ways we might be guilty of doing the same

thing, if on a less dramatic scale?

Summary: We are people with a destiny that extends far beyond our short

existence in this present world. We are citizens of a heavenly kingdom.

This kingdom is both present and future. It already is with us but will

be realized fully in all its glory when Christ returns to take us home.

Then eternal life in God’s presence will be ours.

INSIDE

The Secondhand Church

Pamela Obero sat beside her mud house in Kenya and listened to the

preacher’s sermon over the loudspeaker. She was curious about the Seventh-

day Adventist meetings being held on a nearby vacant lot, but she belonged

to another church.

The messages touched Pamela’s heart, and at times she felt that the speaker

talked directly to her. So, on Sabbath morning she took her five children to

the meetings instead of to her own church. When the pastor invited those who

wanted special prayer to come forward, Pamela took her children to the front.

Her husband had died, and she was the sole support of her family. Life was

difficult.

Pamela had been an ardent member of the charismatic church to which she

belonged. She had donated the land on which the church members built their

mud-brick house of worship. So, when she did not attend church for three

weeks, some church members visited and asked why she was no longer

attending. “I have found truth that I never knew before,” she told them sim-

ply. “And I am learning how to properly raise my family.”

Pamela and her children joined the nearest Adventist church, which was

three miles (five kilometers) from her home. Then she learned that the charis-

matic church to which she had belonged had abandoned the mud-brick

church they had built on her land.

Pamela invited the church leaders to hold Branch Sabbath School in the

abandoned building, and the church accepted her offer.

When Pamela’s friends from her former church ask her questions about

why she left, she shares with them new truths she has learned and invites

them to worship in the new Adventist church—their former building. So far

three of her friends have joined the Adventist group that worships in the mud-

brick church.

The little congregation of 25 met in the mud-brick church for a year before

it deteriorated to where it was no longer safe. The church members decided

to rebuild with more permanent materials.

Pamela sells porridge and buns that she

makes to provide for her children. Her home is

poor, but she shares with those in need when

she can. When her friends laugh at her poor

house, she smiles and tells them, “My God is

my husband and my provider. He is so good to

my family; I cannot thank Him enough.”

Your mission offerings reach searching hearts

like Pamela around the world. Thank you.

PAMELA OBERO (left) shares her faith in Kendu Bay,

Kenya.

Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission.

Web site: www.adventistmission.org

tor

L ESSON

*May 30–June 5

Discipleship

SABBATH AFTERNOON

Read for This Week’s Study:

Exod. 18:13–27, Matt.

4:19, 9:9, Mark 3:13–19, 8:31–38, Rom. 8:18.

Memory Text:

“ ‘This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much

fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples’ ” (John 15:8, NIV).

t is important that we use our intellectual capacities to grasp as

much as is humanly possible of what God has revealed to us. Yet,

perfect knowledge of all doctrine is not a prerequisite for salva-

tion. We are, though, commanded to do all the things that we have

been instructed to do. To be a disciple is to be a lifelong learner and

follower of the Master.

What is a disciple? The SDA Bible Dictionary defines it, basically,

as “one who, as a student or adherent, follows the teaching of another,

especially of a public teacher. In the NT ‘disciple’ is the translation of

the Gr. mathe

–

s . . . which is related to manthan

–

o, ‘to learn,’ hence

means ‘a learner,’ ‘a pupil,’ ‘an adherent.’ ”—Page 288. Let’s look a

little closer at what it means to be a disciple.

The Week at a Glance:

A disciple is a lifelong learner.

When Christ calls us, we are to follow, wherever He leads and no

matter the suffering involved, for it will involve suffering if for no

other reason than it must involve sacrifice. In human terms the

rewards for discipleship seem rather meager. But when the true

dimension of life in Christ is discovered, we realize it’s worth suf-

fering for, no matter the cost here and now.

* Study this w

eek’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, June 6.

SUNDAY

May 31

Followers and Leaders

Read

Exodus 18:13–27. What principles of leadership can be found

in these verses? What can we learn from them about leaders and

followers?

____________________________________________________________________

Although all people are fundamentally equal in the eyes of God,

there are major differences in the manner in which they function.

Some have the gift of leadership. Our society, and every organization

within society, would soon collapse if there were no leaders. Even in

heaven there appears to be a distinct differentiation in roles: There are,

for instance, angels and archangels! When God called His people out

of Egypt, He appointed leaders. When He organized a sanctuary serv-

ice, He made sure there would be adequate leadership. God worked

through judges, prophets, kings, and so on.

But leaders are useless without followers who are willing to accept

their leadership. In particular, they need a group of close associates

who are willing to learn from their leader and to assist in the realiza-

tion of the goals of their leader.

Jesus

called 12 disciples. Read Mark 3:13–19 for a condensed ver-

sion of His selection of 12 men. What other examples of teachers

who surrounded themselves with disciples do we find in a Gospel

story? See Mark 2:18.

There was nothing extraordinary in the fact that Jesus had a group

of disciples. It was customary for teachers to have a following of

“interns.” What was remarkable, however, were the kind of men Jesus

chose. Jesus saw a potential in these men that most of us would not

have discerned! What also is remarkable was their instant willingness

to leave their daily business and follow this Carpenter from Nazareth.

They apparently saw something extraordinary in this Man that even

most of His own relatives had not discovered yet.

It should, however, be noted that although the Twelve are a very spe-

cial group, there are also many others referred to in the Gospels as

“disciples.”

There tends to be in some societies an antileadership attitude;

in contrast, in some societies people all but blindly follow their

leaders. What’s the tendency in your society, and how do you

strike a proper balance?

MONDAY

June 1

Marks of Discipleship: Obedience and

Loyalty

Jesus did not just share knowledge with His disciples, although it

must have been a tremendous privilege to constantly hear Jesus

explain the Scriptures and answer the numerous questions with which

the spiritual leaders of His day bombarded Him. They quickly noticed

what others also perceived. He taught with an authority that surpassed

the scholars of His day. He separated lifeless traditions from the real-

life issues that God’s Word addresses. However, there was more the

disciples needed to learn. They also needed to learn to make their own

will and desires subject to the will of the Almighty.

What

principles of discipleship can we find in the following texts?

Matt. 4:19, 9:9, Mark 8:34.

“Yes, follow Him through evil as well as through good report.

Follow Him in befriending the most needy and friendless. Follow Him

in being forgetful of self, abundant in acts of self-denial and self-

sacrifice to do others good; when reviled, reviling not again; mani-

festing love and compassion for the fallen race. He counted not His

life dear, but gave it up for us all. Follow Him from the lowly manger

to the cross. He was our example.”—Ellen G. White, Testimonies for

the Church, vol. 2, p. 178.

How

did Peter react when many followers deserted Jesus? John

6:60–70.

Not all disciples stayed with Jesus. Many turned away. Peter spoke

for the disciples when declaring their allegiance. With the exception

of Judas, they eventually did prove to be faithful followers, and they

became leaders in the early church, even though they had moments of

grave doubt and disillusionment when their Master was taken prisoner

and crucified. Their experience gives us great comfort. Many of us

have had moments when our resolve to be disciples was at low tide,

but as in the case of the apostles, this does not mean that we cannot

overcome our temporary lapse.

If someone were to ask you, “How loyal are you to Jesus?” how

would you respond, and why? What outward evidences do you

give of your loyalty to Him?

TUESDAY

June 2

Sacrifice

Most of us like to be with important people. Meeting a head of state

or a government minister or a celebrity provides us with a much-

coveted conversation topic. Knowing someone important, or even

knowing someone who knows someone important, somehow seems to

endow us with a halo of glory. It seems a natural desire to climb up

the social ladder rather than remain near its base. Jesus’ disciples were

no exception to this unfortunate human trait.

How

did some disciples (and their relatives) hope that following Jesus

would enhance their status? What was Jesus’ reply? Matt.

20:20–23, Mark 10:35–41. What does this attitude remind you of?

Isa. 14:12–14.

Rather than promising His disciples material prosperity and social sta-

tus, Jesus prepared them for a different kind of reality: Following Him

is a costly business.

Read

Mark 8:31–38.What do you learn in this passage about the cost

of discipleship?

In his famous book The Cost of Discipleship, Dietrich Bonhoeffer,

the young German theologian who was martyred by the Nazis in 1945,

emphasizes that divine grace does not come cheap. And following

Christ is not an easy thing to do. It inevitably will involve suffering.

Just as Christ said that He “must suffer,” so must we. If we want to

identify with Him in His life, we must also do so in His suffering and

death. “To endure the cross is not a tragedy; it is the suffering which

is the fruit of an exclusive allegiance to Jesus Christ. When it comes,

it is not an accident, but a necessity. . . . Only a man . . . totally com-

mitted in discipleship can experience the meaning of the cross. The

cross is there, right from the beginning, or he has only got to pick it

up; there is no need for him to go out and look for a cross for himself,

no need for him deliberately to run after suffering. Jesus says that

every Christian has his own cross waiting for him, a cross destined

and appointed by God.”—Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of

Discipleship (New York: The MacMillan Company, 1965), p. 98.

What is the cross that God has given you to bear? What has fol-

lowing Christ cost you? If your ans

wer is “Nothing, really,”

maybe you need to take a closer look at how closely you are fol-

lowing the Master.

WEDNESDAY

June 3

The Rewards of Discipleship

Jesus left His disciples with no doubt that following Him would

require sacrifice. He was totally up front with them in regard to what

they should expect.

What

did Jesus promise as far as immediate or short-term reward for

following Him as a disciple? Luke 9:57, 58; John 15:18–25. What

specific “promise” did Jesus have for Peter? John 21:15–18. What

does this tell us about the cost of following Christ?

The disciples, except Judas, eventually became the apostles. From

the first chapters of the book of Acts, it is clear that these men had

learned many lessons. They had been with Jesus, and now, with the

power of the Spirit, they were able to deal with opposition and perse-

cution. Although we cannot be sure about the details, there is good

reason to believe the strong traditions from the early church era which

say that all apostles eventually suffered martyrdom. All supposedly

suffered a violent death, except John, but his imprisonment on Patmos

was not a luxurious vacation either. He also was a “brother and com-

panion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are

ours in Jesus” (Rev. 1:9, NIV).

What

aspect of discipleship outweighs all suffering that might come

our way as we follow Christ? John 10:10, Rom. 8:28–39.

Those who follow Christ will face numerous challenges. If they stay

focused on their Master, they will be able to deal with whatever hap-

pens. They will have something that is precious beyond words. He

gives them His peace, which is unlike the imperfect and transient kind

of peace the world offers (John 14:27). It is the peace that transcends

all understanding (Phil. 4:7). That peace is the hallmark of the abun-

dant life that Christ gives to His disciples (John 10:10). In spite of all

trials and temptations, this is the kind of life that satisfies at a level

beyond the reach of those who choose to live without Christ.

And yet, even more so, faithful followers of Christ have the assur-

ance of eternal life, the assurance that whatever they struggle with

now can’t be compared with the promise of eternity that awaits them.

Read Romans 8:18. What hope and comf

ort can you draw from

this promise for yourself? Why should it tell you to never, never

give up?

THURSDAY

June 4

The Lordship of Jesus Christ

Being a disciple implies the recognition of having a master, of alle-

giance to someone we are willing to follow and serve. Our relation-

ship to others usually finds expression in the manner in which we

address them.

What

was one of the titles given to Christ by His followers? John

20:28, 1 Cor. 16:22.

The New Testament uses a variety of names for Jesus. He is called “the

Son of God” but also “the Son of Man” or “the Messiah.” Hundreds of

times Jesus is referred to as “the Lord.” This word, which initially was

quite general in its application, became a highly significant term for the

early Christians. The Roman emperor claimed divinity and wanted to be

addressed as “the Lord.” To confess that Christ was their ultimate Lord

rather than the Roman Caesar was not just expressing an opinion. It lit-

erally could be a matter of life or death. Those who lived in the Roman

realm should only have one Kyrios (lord), and to apply this title to any

person other than the emperor could well end in torture and death.

Thus, it required faith and dedicated discipleship to call Jesus

“Lord.” But today it also is no small thing to call Jesus our Lord and

truly mean it. If He is our Lord, He is the Sovereign over our whole

life, over all that we say and do.

What

is the key element that reveals how genuine we are in calling

Jesus “Lord”? Matt 7:22, 23; Luke 6:46.

____________________________________________________________________

It’s one thing to call Jesus our Lord and our God and to profess

faith, love, and allegiance to Him. It’s quite another to truly live it.

Jesus was clear: Our fidelity to Him will be manifested by our obedi-

ence to Him and to His commands. In fact, the word for “iniquity” in

Matthew 7:23 means “lawlessness.” No question, a true follower of

Jesus, a true disciple, will obey His commandments (John 14:15).

Try to imagine how different our church would be if everyone

who professed to follow Christ were truly disciples of J

esus.

What differences would we see? While you can’t change others,

what difference could you make were your life one of true con-

formity to Jesus’ will?

FRIDAY

June 5

Further Study:

For comments on the calling of the disciples, read

Ellen G. White, “ ‘We Have Found the Messias,’ ” pp. 132–143, in The

Desire of Ages.

“It was not enough for the disciples of Jesus to be instructed as to

the nature of His kingdom. What they needed was a change of heart

that would bring them into harmony with its principles. Calling a lit-

tle child to Him, Jesus set him in the midst of them; then tenderly fold-

ing the little one in His arms He said, ‘Except ye be converted, and

become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of

heaven.’ The simplicity, the self-forgetfulness, and the confiding love

of a little child are the attributes that Heaven values. These are the

characteristics of real greatness.”—Ellen G. White, The Desire of

Ages, p. 437.

Discussion Questions:

● As a class, go over the question of what it costs to be a true fol-

lower of Christ. Ask those who are willing to discuss it, what it

costs them to follow the Lord. Ask, too, why they believe it is

worth it.

● What can we do to help the new believers among us become

better disciples of Christ? Why is being a disciple so much more

than just intellectually consenting to a number of doctrines, or

even more than believing that Jesus died for your sins?

● We are called to be disciples of Jesus. But on the human level,

we also have role models. Is it legitimate to consider ourselves

also disciples of a human leader we respect and consider a role

model? If so, how could we do this while at the same time not for-

getting to whom we owe our ultimate allegiance?

● How can we fight the sinful human desire for more self-glory,

more adulation, more power and prestige? Why are such desires

so contrary to all that it means to be a disciple of Christ?

Summary: To be a disciple of Christ is no small thing. It requires a lot of

conviction and stamina and a willingness to follow the Lord, regard-

less of the suffering involved. To be a disciple of Christ means to live

by faith, to trust God even in the hardest of times. It means to be will-

ing to die to self and live for the good of others and for the glory of

God.

INSIDE

The Kettle Failed Not

by RUSS DAWIS

A colleague and I climbed the mountains of Southern Mindanao in the

Philippines to survey a possible site that a tribal chief had donated for an

Adventist high school for the Higaonan people. While in the area, we were

invited to stay in the home of Pangga Landagan.

The man received us warmly, made us comfortable, and offered us food.

I knew the family wasn’t well-to-do and asked why he felt so generous

toward the SULADS missionaries.

“It is my blessing and joy to take care of you,” our host said. “For when

we care for His children, God blesses us even more abundantly.” Then he

explained his remark. “When two SULADS missionary teachers came to

the village, they seemed shy and hesitant to visit the homes in the village.

I knew that their small stipend would not be enough to buy food, so my

wife and I invited them to eat with us so that they would have good food

while they worked for our people.

“One day we had just enough rice for one meal for two people. But our mis-

sionaries hadn’t eaten that day, so I whispered to my wife, Let’s feed the mis-

sionaries first. She agreed and cooked the rice and served the missionaries.

“While they ate I slipped out to look for food, but I came back empty-

handed and hungry. I checked the kettle in the kitchen, expecting only a

handful of leftovers. To my surprise, the kettle was full!

“I whispered to my wife, ‘Haven’t you fed the missionaries yet?’

“ ‘Yes, they’ve eaten,’ she said. ‘And I’ve eaten too.’

“ ‘But the kettle’s full!’ I said.

“ ‘That can’t be!’ my wife protested. I showed her the kettle, still full of

rice. ‘It’s an Elijah miracle,’ I whispered.

“Together we thanked God for providing for our needs and those of the

missionaries too. The constant rain made it impossible for our missionary

guests to leave for the next village as they had planned, so that evening my

wife reheated the rice and we ate from the full pot. Again we let them eat

first, and then I looked at the pot. It was still full!

“In the morning the kettle was still full, and again my wife reheated it

for breakfast before the missionaries left on their journey.

“From that day on, I see that any visitor in our village receives the best we

can offer. And as always we see that our food containers and kettle fail not.”

“Those who seek the Lord lack no good thing” (Psalm 34:10, NIV). As

we support world mission with our offerings, we will see that God will

provide all our needs.

RUSS DAWIS is the coordinator of SULADS, the student mission program in Northeastern

Mindanao Mission in the Philippines.

Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission.

Web site: www.adventistmission.org

tor

L ESSON

*June 6–12

Stewardship

SABBATH AFTERNOON

Read for This Week’s Study:

Deut. 8:18; Ps. 50:12;

Matt. 24:46; 25:14–30; Luke 4:16; 1 Cor. 6:19, 20.

Memory Text:

“ ‘Everyone who has will be given more, and he

will have an abundance’ ” (Matthew 25:29, NIV).

tewardship is not limited to caring for financial resources and to

making sure that God gets His 10 percent. Though that’s cer-

tainly part of it, so much more is involved.

“The term steward is misunderstood and even foreign in our soci-

ety. We do not have any terms in our modern vocabulary that carry the

richness of this term. Caretaker fails to capture the responsibility laid

on the steward. Manager seems inadequate to describe the relation-

ship between the owner and the steward. Custodian is too passive a

term. Agent is too self-serving in our day. Ambassador is too political,

and it lacks the servant aspect. Warden is too administrative and loses

the sense of the personal. Guardian is too closely tied solely to

parental responsibilities.”—R. Scott Rodin, Stewards in the Kingdom

(Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 2000), p. 27.

The Week at a Glance:

How do I use my talents, my time,

my material resources, all the things that God has given me stew-

ardship over? How do I truly live my responsibilities toward my

Maker and Redeemer? This is what stewardship is all about.

* Study this week’s lesson to pr

epare for Sabbath, June 13.

SUNDAY

June 7

Talents

If there were a prize given for the clearest explanation of an all-

encompassing profound concept, Jesus would have easily won it with

His parable of the talents.

Read

Matthew 25:14–30. What basic message about stewardship do

you take from Jesus’ words here?

____________________________________________________________________

Reality number one: We all have talents. Note in the parable that all

the servants receive one or more talents. No one is left without some

talent. That is the first truth Jesus wanted to impress upon His disci-

ples.

Reality number two: We do not all have the same number of talents.

It is a fact of life that we will have to accept. Some people are gifted

in many ways while others are not so multitalented. Those who have

several talents should never look down upon others who have fewer

talents. Jesus’ point is clear: The quantity of our talents is not the most

important; what we do with whatever we have been given is what mat-

ters.

Reality number three: Some refuse to use their talents. Some never

recognize the talents they have. Sadly, no one reminded them of their

gifts. Or they did realize their gifts but, for a variety of reasons,

refused to invest any energy in developing them.

Reality number four: Not using your talents is a serious business.

The “worthless servant” gets no second chance. He is thrown “ ‘ “into

the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” ’ ”

(Matt. 25:30, NIV)—the symbolic description of the utter nothingness

of eternal death. Not using what God has entrusted to us not only

impairs us in this life but jeopardizes our eternal life. This means that

the issue of being faithful stewards is not something that belongs to

the periphery of our Christian experience—it is the vital characteris-

tic of discipleship.

What are your gifts? Even more important, what are you doing

with them? Are you using them to serve only yourself and your

own desires, or are you using them also in service to the Lord?

Why is this question so important?

MONDAY

June 8

Time

There is a plethora of books and courses on the subject of time man-

agement. They have helped millions of people make better use of their

time. Many Christians would do well to read some of these books or

attend a good seminar. But there are aspects to a Christian use of time

that one will learn only by reading the Bible and, in particular, by

studying the life of Jesus.

What

do we learn from the Gospels about Jesus’ use of His time?

What are some of the elements to be noted, apart from His busy

schedule of preaching and healing? What other passages can add

further information?

Matt. 4:23_______________________________________________

Mark 1:29–31____________________________________________

Luke 4:16_______________________________________________

John 2:1–11_____________________________________________

John 12:2_______________________________________________

In today’s stressful world, the example of Jesus is as refreshing as it

is worth imitating. Jesus worked hard and was fully committed to His

mission. But He made sure that He did not miss the blessings of the

Sabbath. The Gospels make it abundantly clear that He had time for

His Father, for His friends, for relaxation, and for a good meal. This

type of time management (or rather, time stewardship) will prove a

blessing for all who practice it.

The Bible does not praise workaholics, nor does it have any com-

mendations for those who always take it easy. As always, there is a bal-

ance, one in which we get done the things we need to get done, while

at the same time we don’t burn ourselves out emotionally or physi-

cally. God has the first claim on our time. We manifest this in our

keeping of the Sabbath and our daily time for prayer and worship. Our

loved ones also are entitled to a fair share of our time. Then there is

time for work, for leisure, and for a host of other things. The church

also claims a substantial part of our time. But there must always be a

balance so that we don’t fall into one trap or another.

Where do you lean, toward doing not enough or toward doing

too much? How can you live a more balanced life in regard to

the stewardship of your time? Why is it important that you do?

TUESDAY

June 9

Stewards of Our Body

In the secular world, most people regard their bodies as their own

property. They have total say over what happens to it. This applies not

only to vast numbers of women who claim that they should be free to

decide whether or not they will have an abortion but also to all who

feel they have the right to harm their bodies by the use of illegal sub-

stances or by eating large quantities of junk food or by having sexual

relationships with as many partners as they choose.

Read

and pray over 1 Corinthians 6:19, 20. What do these verses tell

us about how we use our bodies? What are practical ways we can

put these words into effect?

____________________________________________________________________

The immediate context indicates that the apostle Paul was, in par-

ticular, referring to the abuse of our body through sexual immorality.

Unfortunately, this is as relevant today in many parts of the world as

it was in ancient Corinth, a city known for its perversities.

But the basic idea is that we should not “sin against our body,”

because we are not our own. First, we have been created by God

through Jesus Christ. He is our Maker, and we therefore are responsi-

ble to Him for all we do. Second, He is our Redeemer, the One who

has bought us “at a price.”

Stewardship of our bodies implies taking good care of our health,

too. It has to do not only with what we eat but also with the amount of

rest we take and with keeping fit through adequate exercise. And there

can be no question of using substances that are addictive or otherwise

harmful.

Yet, again, there is need for balance. “Health itself is not to be a pre-

occupation. It should be a part of the Christian pattern of life and

rather automatic in operation. An overriding preoccupation with

health can be a form of idolatry that gets in the way of a satisfying

relationship with God. Health is to enable service to God, but is not an

end in itself.”—Leo R. Van Dolson and J. Robert Spangler, Healthy,

Happy, Holy (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald

Publishing

Association, 1975), p. 43.

Take a good look at all your health habits, not just diet. What do

you need to improve on? What changes can and should you

make? What holds you back from doing what you know is

right?

WEDNESDAY

June 10

Our Material Possessions

Christian stewardship is emphatically not just about money. But,

just as emphatically, it also is about money. Money is an essential part

of our lives and does play a central role in stewardship.

Read

the following texts: Lev. 27:30, Deut. 8:18, Ps. 50:12, Mal.

3:8–10, Matt. 6:31, Matt. 23:23. What lessons do you draw from

them? Compare your answers with what follows below.

____________________________________________________________________

Fact number one: Everything begins with God. God owns every-

thing. And He gives us the strength to work and make a living. Those

who say, “It is all my own hard work,” forget a vital truth, which is that

it was God alone who enabled them to earn what they did.

Fact number two: God takes first place in all we have and do,

including our use of money. Before you spend any part of your money,

make sure you have set aside your tithes and offerings. Then spend the

rest responsibly, always aware that stewardship extends to the use of

whatever money you have been entrusted with.

Fact number three: God expects His people to return to Him at least

10 percent of their wealth. That was the rule in the Old Testament, and

that principle has never been rescinded. In Old Testament times the

tithes were received by the priests and used for the support of the sanc-

tuary services. Likewise, today our tithes are received and used for

financing the worldwide gospel commission that God has entrusted to

His church.

Fact number four: The more we give, the more we are blessed. Try

it, and you’ll see for yourself the truth of the words that “ ‘it is more

blessed to give than to receive’ ” (Acts 20:35, NIV).

There’s an old English saying, “Let him put his money where his

mouth is.” The idea is that people can talk about how much they

believe in something, but unless they are willing to put some of

their money into it, the talk is meaningless. How does the act of

giving tithes and offerings reveal where our heart really is?

What does your giving reveal about your faith?

THURSDAY

June 11

While We Are Waiting

There is an important dimension in the parables about the talents and

the pounds that we must not miss. In Matthew 25 “the master” (vs. 19,

NIV) went on an extensive journey and returned after a long time to set-

tle the accounts with His servants. In Luke 19 we are told that the “ ‘man

of noble birth’ ” (vs. 12, NIV) went to a distant country. While on His

mission, He was made King and then “returned home” (vs. 15, NIV).

Jesus clearly referred to Himself. He wanted His disciples to know

that He was going away and that it would take a while before He

would come back. But when He returns He will ask for an account of

what was done with what we have been given.

What

should characterize our waiting for the second coming of

Christ? Matt. 24:42–46. What do these verses mean for us in the

practical sense of how we live?

____________________________________________________________________

While we wait, we live with a purpose. It is not a waiting in idleness,

but we wait as dedicated disciples who are keen stewards over all we

have been given. “We are to be vigilant, watching for the coming of the

Son of man; and we must also be diligent; working as well as waiting is

required; there must be a union of the two. This will balance the

Christian character, making it well developed, symmetrical. We should

not feel that we are to neglect everything else, and give ourselves up to

meditation, study, or prayer; neither are we to be full of bustle and hurry

and work, to the neglect of personal piety. Waiting and watching and

working are to be blended. ‘Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit;

serving the Lord.’ ”—Ellen G. White, The Adventist Home, p. 23.

We are waiting for the Owner of everything to return. Soon He will

come and will want to know what we have done with our gifts, our

time, our physical strength, and our material resources. The fact that

He comes to inspect the results of our faithful stewardship should not

in any way frighten us. The accusation of the servant who had buried

his talent and refused to employ it usefully, that the master was a “hard

man” who wanted to harvest where he had not sown, was totally false.

Note that the servants who had been faithful stewards did not share

this negative view. Every effort they had put into their stewardship

assignment was fully worth it when they heard their master say,

“Come and share your master’s happiness” (Matt. 25:21, NIV).

If Jesus came back next week, what do you think He would say

to you regarding what you have done in the past week with the

things He entrusted to you?

FRIDAY

June 12

Further Study:

A mine for further explorations on the topic of

stewardship is the compilation Counsels on Stewardship, in which

Ellen G. White’s comments on this issue have been assembled. See, in

particular, Section VIII, which deals with the right motives for giving

(pp. 195–206).

“The Lord will not require from those who are poor that which they

have not to give; He will not require from the sick the active energies

which bodily weakness forbids. No one need mourn because he can-

not glorify God with talents that were never entrusted to him. But if

you have only one talent, use it well, and it will accumulate. If the tal-

ents are not buried, they will gain yet other talents.”—Ellen. G. White

Comments, The SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 5, p. 1100.

Discussion Questions:

● How are we to understand the whole question of stewardship

and accountability to God in the context of salvation by faith

alone? Are we saved by what good stewards we are? Or does our

stewardship reveal the reality of our faith? And even if we make

mistakes here, why should we not give up in despair?

● What’s wrong with what’s been dubbed the “health and

wealth gospel,” the idea that if you live right, God will give you

lots of money and good health? How is this a perversion of true

principles of stewardship?

● Discuss the following statement: “The greatest, most gifted

people are useless if they don’t make themselves available to be

used by God. In short, availability is more important than abil-

ity.”—Mike Nappa, The Courage to Be a Christian (West Monroe,

La.: Howard Publishing Co., 2001), p. 164.

● What advice do you give to a church member who, struggling

through hard financial times, says that he or she just can’t afford

to pay tithe, much less give offerings? What various approaches

could or should be taken with this person?

Summary: We all have been given one or more talents. We have been

entrusted with resources. As stewards we are expected to “manage”

these resources to the best of our ability, in grateful recognition that

all we have, in fact, comes from God. Stewardship should not be a

hard duty but a joyful prioritizing in all aspects of our lives.

INSIDE

From Shopkeeper to Shepherd

Told to JOHN K. MCGHEE by RAM*

I am Ram.* I live in the Himalayan region of northern India. I was doing

pretty well running a little shop in the mountains. I earned enough money

to keep my parents fed. But I sensed that something was missing from my

life. I was sure that there was more to life than working, eating, and sleep-

ing. I looked forward to the day when I would marry and have children,

but often I wondered, Will a family fill the void in my life?

I love to read, and I’ve studied the mystics and various philosophies, try-

ing to understand the cosmos. But I sensed that I was missing something.

Then one day I bought a book that cost just four rupees (about 10 cents

US). As I read it, I discovered it was the most valuable book in my library.

The book was full of exciting stories and told me how the world began. It

described a God unlike any I had ever known.

I told friends about this marvelous book, the Bible. But few had ever

heard of it. However, some of my more educated friends urged me to stop

reading it immediately. “It’s a book for foreigners,” they said. “They try to

force people to change religions.”

Curious, I decided to find out for myself if their accusations were true.

I asked around and learned that no missionaries lived in our town. Then

one day some strangers walked past my store. I asked one if he was a mis-

sionary.

“Yes, I am,” he replied. He introduced himself as Pastor Ravi.* I told

him that I was searching for the truth about reality. And although he lived

in another mountain valley several miles away, he offered to return so we

could talk about the truth. Pastor Ravi came often to see me and soon

became my teacher and my friend.

I was eager to share with others what Pastor Ravi was teaching me, so

as soon as I could I closed my shop and shared what I was learning with

my family and neighbors. I told Pastor Ravi that I wished I could share the

wonderful truths he was teaching me with others. He has provided me with

a small stipend so I can close my shop and learn how to make disciples for

my new friend Jesus. I am now shepherding a small group of new believ-

ers in a nearby village.

Your mission offerings have brought God’s Word to my village. Thank

you! Now I share that wonderful message with everyone I meet.

*Names have been changed.

DR. JOHN K. MCGHEE is vice president for Community Health and Lifestyle Medicine of the

Adventist hospital system in the Southern Asia Division (India and Nepal).

Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission.

Web site: www.adventistmission.org

tor

L ESSON

*June 13–19

Community

SABBATH AFTERNOON

Read for This Week’s Study:

Gen. 11:1–4, 12:1–3,

1 Cor. 12:12–27, Eph. 4:1–13, Rev. 22:1–6.

Memory Text:

“Now you are the body of Christ, and each one

of you is a part of it” (1 Corinthians 12:27, NIV).

umans are social beings. God could have created a hundred

million perfect human beings as “stand alones” who would

each pursue his or her own independent goals. Instead, He first

created one male and one female and stated that it would not be good

for man to be alone. The first couple was to complement each other.

And they were to multiply and create a community of family members

and eventually larger social units.

One of the most important social units to which people can belong

is their church. Unfortunately, many people no longer recognize the

social benefits of church membership. Of course, the church is more

than a club for men and women who happen to share a certain inter-

est. The church is a community of believers who share in the ultimate

experience of salvation and recognize Christ as their Lord.

The Week at a Glance:

Believing and belonging are

closely linked. God wants us to be part of the community that He

has initiated. It is a privilege to belong to that community, but it

also carries responsibilities. We all have our unique contribution

to make to the body of Christ.

*Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, June 20.

SUNDAY

June 14

God Wants a People

In Genesis 11 we find the record of an experiment in community

building that did not meet with God’s approval. When, after the world-

wide Flood, the descendants of the original survivors decided to stick

together and build a city with a huge tower in the southern part of what

is now Iraq, God was extremely displeased. This was not what God

had intended. Yet, in the following chapter—Genesis 12—the idea of

community building is once again brought into focus, but now in a

very positive sense. God told Abraham (who at that time was still

called Abram) that He wanted to form a people whom He would call

His own.

What

was the major difference between the Tower of Babel initiative

at community building and God’s plan to make Abraham and his

posterity into His people? Compare Gen. 11:1–4 with Gen. 12:1–3.

____________________________________________________________________

From the story of the calling of Abraham onward, the Old Testament

centers on the experiences of the people of God, their failures and

their triumphs. The people of Israel had the mission of making their

covenant-God known to all other nations. They were to prepare the

way for the coming of the Messiah. We know how, as a people, Israel

failed to accomplish its task. When the Messiah came, He was

rejected and killed as a criminal by certain leaders who should have

welcomed Him as their Redeemer. At the same time, many remained

faithful to the Lord and formed the nucleus of what was to become the

Christian church.

Read

1 Peter 2:9, 10. What’s the message to us today?

God’s New Testament people consist of Jews and Gentiles, of men

and women from every nation, tribe, and linguistic group. Like Israel

in Old Testament times, they now have the responsibility of teaching

others about divine grace. Like Israel of old, they, too, belong to a spe-

cial community of believers.

What parallels can you draw between ancient Israel and the

church of today? What lessons should we learn from them?

What mistakes should we avoid?

MONDAY

June 15

The Privilege of Belonging

Laurence J. Peter, an American educator and author, once said,

“Going to church doesn’t make you a Christian any more than going

to the garage makes you a car!” Truly belonging to Christ’s church is

more than having one’s name on the church’s record book. It implies

a realization of what the church is and of one’s own role in the church.

In numerous places Paul refers to fellow believers as saints (Eph.

1:1, Phil. 1:1, Col. 1:2). This word has today acquired a meaning that

it did not have in Bible times. Saints are not perfect or holy people;

they certainly are not people who have been declared to be “saints”

after a long and complex ecclesiastical procedure long after they die.

“For Paul [and for other Bible writers], the term saint had none of the

stained-glass window connotations that it has for us. A saint was not

some ancient, larger-than-life, perfect Christian, but anyone called

and set apart by God who became part of the community of faith.”

—John C. Brunt, Romans, The Abundant Life Bible Amplifier (Boise,

Idaho: Pacific Press

Publishing Association, 1996), p. 42.

What

major role is given to those who belong to the church—the

“body of Christ”? How should each “saint” relate to all others?

1 Cor. 12:12–27.

____________________________________________________________________

A church member is not to be reduced to a statistic. Every member

of the church has a unique role to play and a particular contribution to

make. No one can be missed without causing at least a measure of

dysfunction of the body. At the same time, no member can claim that

his or her contribution is far superior to that of someone else. The

metaphor of the body with its many members sublimely illustrates this

truth. Some parts appear to be more vital than others. The heart, the

brain, the lungs, and the stomach may seem among the most promi-

nent parts, but the functioning or malfunctioning of some minor gland

often also proves to be a matter of life and death.

How do you fit in with your local body? Are you content with

the role you play? Are you jealous of someone else’s role? Are

you a dead, lifeless organ? Or maybe you are trying to take on

more than you need? How can Paul’s words help you better

understand what your role should be?

TUESDAY

June 16

The Responsibility of Belonging

Belonging to the body of Christ is a great privilege. Another figure

of speech underlines this great truth: We all are part of God’s family.

“How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should

be called children of God!” (1 John 3:1, NIV). But privileges always

are accompanied by responsibilities.

What

does the image of the church as the body of Christ, and of each

of us being members of that body, imply as far as our personal

responsibilities are concerned? Eph. 4:1–13.

“All must move like parts of a well-adjusted machinery, each part

dependent on the other part, yet standing distinct in action. And each

one is to take the place assigned him and do the work appointed him.

God calls upon the members of His church to receive the Holy Spirit,

to come together in unity and brotherly sympathy, to bind their inter-

ests together in love.”—Ellen G. White, My Life Today, p. 276.

What

are some other key responsibilities for all church members?

1 Cor. 16:2; 1 Thess. 5:14, 17, 25; Heb. 10:25; 1 Pet. 3:15.

____________________________________________________________________

Many people live in consumer societies and, as a result, tend to

bring this consumer mentality into their church. The first question

often is, What is in it for me? rather than, How can I contribute with

my talents and gifts? When John F. Kennedy was inaugurated in 1961

as president of the United States, he spoke these immortal words:

“ ‘Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for

your country.’ ” These words also are applicable to our attitude toward

the church. Even though the church can and does do a lot for those

who faithfully attend and join in its many activities, we should first of

all constantly ask ourselves, How can I serve better? How can I

encourage others? How can I be a role model for our youth? How can

I contribute to making my local church into a spiritual home in which

many can find the inner peace and nurture they need?

Ask yourself these questions and honestly look at your answers:

What is my main motive for going to church? What I can get, or

what I can give?

100

WEDNESDAY

June 17

Unity in Diversity

Many Christians strive for greater unity among the many denomina-

tions. They speak of the “scandal” of division and disunity and remind

us that Christ repeatedly called for unity among His followers. Unity

also is a key theme for the Seventh-day Adventist Church, which is

threatened by fragmentation and polarization from within. But the unity

Adventists seek cannot be reduced to mere organizational unity or uni-

formity in worship styles and other traditions. It must go much deeper.

What

are key qualifications for true Christian unity? John 14:6; Eph.

4:3, 13.

To be united in Christ means to be united in the truth. Christ defined

Himself as the Truth. That is not to say that there cannot be true unity

between people who differ with regard to certain theological views or

in the interpretation of certain passages. But true unity does require a

common commitment to the Scriptures as the Word of God and to its

fundamental teachings, and a common desire to practice what the Word

teaches. It does not require, however, that all members think alike and

worship in exactly the same way. It does not annul the wonderful cul-

tural diversity that so much enriches our worldwide church community.

How

does the description of the New Jerusalem illustrate the rich

diversity that characterizes God’s people? Revelation 21 and

22:1–6; in particular, 21:12–14, 19, 26, and 22:2.

The New Jerusalem refers to something concrete and real that God

creates for His people, even if the description is highly symbolic.

What strikes us as we read it is the emphasis on diversity. No wonder,

because the redeemed will come from “every tribe and language and

people and nation” (Rev. 5:9, NIV; cf. Rev. 7:9).

The peoples who will enter the gates of the New Jerusalem and will

populate the new earth are like the many branches that issue from the

same vine. “In the branches of a vine there is diversity, and yet in this

diversity there is unity. Every branch is united to the parent stalk.

Every branch draws its nourishment from the same source. When we

are branches of the true Vine, there will be no quarreling among us,

no strife for the supremacy, no disparaging of one another.”—Ellen G.

White, General Conference Bulletin, April 25, 1901.

If there is to be such diversity in heaven, w

hy is there ethnic

strife in our churches today? Why do we tend to want to con-

gregate with those of our own ilk as opposed to others? What

kind of message are we sending by doing this?

101

THURSDAY

June 18

The Church’s Foundation: Jesus Christ

We often speak of our church. We have many reasons to be proud of

our church. On the other hand, we realize that our church is not per-

fect. We have invested a lot of ourselves, of our talents, time, energy,

and money in the church and have good reasons to have a clear sense

of ownership. However, in the final analysis, the church is not ours. It

is God’s. And that makes a decisive difference.

What

did Christ Himself state in answer to the question about to

whom the church belongs? Matt. 16:18.

The statement by Christ about the rock upon which God’s church was

to be built has been grossly misunderstood by many. When the full con-

text and all other biblical evidence is taken into consideration, there is no

ground for suggesting that Peter was the rock upon whom the church was

founded and that special authority was transferred from him to the future

bishops of Rome. Peter’s confession of Christ as the Son of the living

God (Matt. 16:16) was the rock upon which God founded His church.

Consider

the meaning of some other symbols used to underline the

same truth, that is, that the church is built on Jesus Christ and

that it is His church rather than ours. Eph. 2:20; 4:15, 16; Rev.

1:12–16, 20.

____________________________________________________________________

Like so many passages in the book of Revelation, the description of

Jesus Christ in 1:12–20 is full of Old Testament imagery. Christ is pre-

sented as walking in the midst of seven lampstands, clothed as the High

Priest. Our mind automatically goes back to the symbol of the lamp-

stand in the ancient tabernacle that proclaimed God’s presence among

His people. Before the book of Revelation goes into detail about “what

must soon take place” (1:1, NIV), it makes sure that we see everything

from the right perspective. It is the revelation of Jesus Christ, the Alpha

and the Omega, the First and the Last, our heavenly High Priest, who

is not some distant, static deity but the One who walks in the midst of

His church.

If, ultimately, the church belongs to God, what is our role in it?

Are we, then, not stewards of it? What kind of responsibilities

does this place on us? How well are you living up to this respon-

sibility? What can you do better?

102

FRIDAY

June 19

Further Study:

For a thorough Adventist study on the nature of

the church, see R. Dederen, ed., Handbook of Seventh-day Adventist

Theology (Hagerstown, Md.: Review and Herald

Publishing Associ-

ation, 2000), pp. 538–581. See also chapter 45 of Ellen G. White, The

Desire of Ages, pp. 410–418.

“Jesus answered Peter, saying, ‘Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona:

for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which

is in heaven’ [Matt. 16:17, KJV].

“The truth which Peter had confessed is the foundation of the

believer’s faith. It is that which Christ Himself has declared to be eter-

nal life. But the possession of this knowledge was no ground for self-

glorification. Through no wisdom or goodness of his own had it been

revealed to Peter. Never can humanity, of itself, attain to a knowledge

of the divine. ‘It is as high as heaven; what canst thou do? deeper than

hell; what canst thou know?’ Job 11:8. Only the spirit of adoption can

reveal to us the deep things of God.”—Ellen G. White, The Desire of

Ages, p. 412.

Discussion Questions:

● Is church membership a necessary condition for salvation? Or

do we join the church for other reasons? If so, what are they?

What great advantages do we have being part of a body? At the

same time, what things must we be careful of and watch out for?

● Some people say, “I have stopped going to church. When I

attended, it left me empty. When I go out in nature, I have a

deeper religious experience than when I listen to an uninterest-

ing sermon.” What would you reply to such a person?

● Dwell more on the questions raised in Wednesday’s lesson

regarding ethnic diversity in our church. Why, of all people,

should Christians be the most accepting and loving of others,

regardless of ethnic differences? What could be done to help us

better live up to what we know the Lord would have us do regard-

ing the important question of racial and ethnic harmony?

Summary: The church is a divine initiative. It is God’s church rather than

our church. We are members of the body of Christ—each of us with

our own distinct function—but must always remember that He is the

Head. We are not called to uniformity but must do all we can to main-

tain true unity in Christ.

INSIDE

103

Onward Christian Soldiers

by PAUL CLEE

Tomas Repsys was an officer in the Lithuanian military when he met the

Savior a few years ago. He was touched by the warm fellowship and Bible

teachings of the Adventist Church and felt God urging him to share his

faith with fellow soldiers. But he was unsure how to go about it.

Repsys studied the Bible and other Christian literature to ground himself

in his faith so that he could answer questions others might ask. But he

found that few people wanted to hear about God. He prayed for wisdom

and for direction regarding those with whom to share his faith.

After much prayer Repsys was assigned to work in the military head-

quarters, a position he knows that God provided so that he could minister

to those with whom he came in contact.

He learned of a Christian organization called ECHOS (European

Christians Home Organization for Soldiers) that had just been established.

Its goals were similar to his own, and he joined their group. He began invit-

ing soldiers to lectures on subjects ranging from home and family to per-

sonal health and Christian principles. This opened the door to invite sol-

diers to Bible studies, as well.

Leaders of ECHOS provided multimedia equipment, Christian books,

Bibles, and a lot of moral support to Repsys as he ministered to those who

came. For moral support he invited church members as well as fellow sol-

diers he knew well. And he shared the lecture series with pastors, laypeo-

ple, and a few fellow soldiers.

Besides holding lectures and weekly Bible studies, the ECHOS group

organizes outings every second month for the soldiers. They visit historic

locations or places of natural beauty. During the outing Repsys or one of

the other Christian soldiers gives a short worship. As many as 25 soldiers

attend the meetings or go on the outings.

This outreach provides opportunities to identify soldiers who are open to

spiritual things. Repsys has invited soldiers to his home to talk about God

on a deeper level.

Military service is short in Lithuania, but through the efforts of Tomas

Repsys and fellow Christians, they are making this time count for Christ in

the lives of young soldiers who often are away from home for the first time.

Lithuania was once part of the Soviet Union. Today about one thousand

Seventh-day Adventist believers—or 1 person in every 3,400 Lithuanians—

worship in 17 churches. Our mission offerings support various outreach pro-

grams in Lithuania and around the world. Thank you for giving.

PAUL CLEE is Communication director for the Trans-European Division.

Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission.

Web site: www.adventistmission.org

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104

L ESSON

*June 20–26

Mission

SABBATH AFTERNOON

Read for This Week’s Study:

Mark 16:15, 16; Luke

24:46, 47; John 14:6; Eph. 4:11–15; 2 Pet. 2:1–3; Rev. 14:6–12.

Memory Text:

“Always be prepared to give an answer to every-

one who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.

But do this with gentleness and respect” (1 Peter 3:15, NIV).

ission is not an old-fashioned word associated with tropical

helmets and six-year terms in isolated places around the world.

The term mission refers to a core aspect of the Christian life.

“The words mission and missionary come from Latin words meaning

send and one sent. . . . The English Bible usually uses the noun apostle,

which also comes from the Greek word that means one sent. . . . Thirty-

nine times the Gospel of John says that Jesus was sent by God. Thirty-

nine times, then, Jesus is defined in that book alone as a missionary

or apostle.”—Jon L. Dybdahl, “Missionary God—Missionary Church”

in Erich W. Baumgartner, ed., Re-Visioning Adventist Mission in Europe

(Berrien Springs, Mich.: Andrews University Press, 1998), p. 8.

We, as followers of Christ, are fellow missionaries with Jesus. As

He was sent to this world, so we are sent to represent Him and to

preach the three angels’ messages to every person. The longer we are

here, however, the greater the danger of our becoming inward-

focused, seeking to maintain our structures and institutions at the

expense of what we are called to do, which is to preach to the world

the present-truth message that God has given us.

The Week at a Glance:

Mission is the heart of the church.

The destiny of people, far and near, is at stake. Mission is not one

among many programs of the church. It is the very reason for its

existence. Each Christian is called to be a missionary.

* Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, June 27.

105

SUNDAY

June 21

People Will Be Lost, Unless . . .

Theologians through the ages have debated whether or not God

eventually will save all people. Some say God’s love guarantees that,

eventually, no one will be lost. Others say that people who have never

heard of Christ will get an opportunity to come to believe after death.

Others again defend various alternative theories. The problem with

theories, however, is that often they try to explain everything when, in

fact, we must simply be content with what God has revealed to us.

There are questions to which we do not know the answers. But we

know that He is totally just in what He does and, at the same time, is

limitless in His love. He also has made clear that people have a free

will and that it is possible to be lost. In the end there will be a separa-

tion between those who are saved and those who will face eternal

death. And we know also that the gospel must be preached as quickly

as possible to as many people as possible.

What

do the following texts tell us about the importance of preaching

the gospel to the whole world?

• John 14:6 ___________________________________________

• Acts 4:12 ___________________________________________

• 1 John 5:11, 12_______________________________________

John 3:16 is one of the best-known texts in the Bible. “ ‘God so

loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever

believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life’ ” (NIV). The text

speaks about the love of God, which found expression in the sending

of His Son to this earth. It promises eternal life to all who believe in

Him. But it also clearly points to the alternative. Those who do not lis-

ten to the gospel call and refuse to accept Christ will perish. The deci-

sion as to who will perish and who will receive eternal life is not ours.

We may be in for some real surprises when we see the roll call of the

saved. Without overriding people’s will, God will do everything pos-

sible to reduce the number of those who will perish. And—amazingly

enough—He has, in His wisdom, given us a role in that process.

What is your own role in the church’s mission? How seriously

do you take the call to reach others with the gospel? What more

could you do?

106

MONDAY

June 22

The Great Commission

The command to take the gospel to the entire world is found in all

four Gospels, as well as in the book of Acts. They show, of course,

clear parallels, but there are also some significant differences. One

needs to read all versions to form a complete picture of everything

that is implied in the Great Commission.

Read

the passages in which the Great Commission is recorded and

note how they complement each other. What are the specific

details in each of these passages?

Matt. 28:19, 20_________________________________________

Mark 16:15, 16_________________________________________

Luke 24:46, 47_________________________________________

John 20:21____________________________________________

Acts 1:8_______________________________________________

The gospel is to be preached “to all nations.” According to General

Conference statistics, the Seventh-day Adventist Church is now pro-

claiming its message in more than two hundred countries. This means

that there are only a few countries in which our church does not have

an official presence. Among these are several large ones: North Korea,

Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Yemen; most of the others are small, with less

than one million inhabitants. So, one would be tempted to conclude

that the Adventist Church almost has “finished the work.” That, how-

ever, would be false. For even though we must give thanks to our Lord

that our church continues to grow rapidly in many parts of the world and

that many new territories constantly are being entered, the challenge is

still enormous. When the New Testament speaks about “nations,” it uses

a word that would be more correctly translated as people groups or “eth-

nic groups.” Our work, therefore, is not completed until all people

groups have been reached. There is considerable debate about how

many such people groups exist. The number quoted by specialists varies

between some twelve thousand to more than twenty thousand, depend-

ing on the definition one uses. But, whatever definition is used, several

thousand of these people groups have not yet been reached.

Think about all the unreached people in your own community,

whatever their ethnic background. What difference has your

existence made in reaching them? What does your answer tell

you about yourself and your role in the mission of the church?

107

TUESDAY

June 23

A Witnessing Church

What

special message is to be proclaimed by God’s people in the time

of the end? Rev. 14:6–12. What is your understanding of that mes-

sage? Paraphrase it in your own words.

____________________________________________________________________

The passage in which we find the messages of the three angels is

found in a context that clearly focuses on the end of time. It is imme-

diately preceded by a vision of the “firstfruits” (vs. 4) of the redeemed

and followed by a vision of the “harvest” (vs. 15) of all the saved. It is

important to know what these messages entail. But also we need to

understand who these “angels” are that bring this “eternal gospel” (vs.

5, NIV). The fact that the word angel in prophecy is a symbol for

human messengers, leaders, and church members is also underscored

by Ellen G. White: “The angels are represented as flying in the midst

of heaven, proclaiming to the world a message of warning, and hav-

ing a direct bearing upon the people living in the last days of this

earth’s history. No one hears the voice of these angels, for they are a

symbol to represent the people of God who are working in harmony

with the universe of heaven. Men and women, enlightened by the

Spirit of God, and sanctified through the truth, proclaim the three

messages in their order.”—Life Sketches, p. 429.

Just as in the Great Commission, we find in the opening statement

of the three angels’ messages a strong emphasis on the challenge to

take the gospel to every person on earth. Yet, a great danger that we

face, especially the longer we are here, is shifting from the missionary

mode to the maintenance mode. We can easily lose sight of our mis-

sion to witness to the world and focus more on protecting and sus-

taining our own institutions. When that happens to us, or the churches

or institutions we represent, then we are losing the reason for our exis-

tence.

Think about this potential problem, that of focusing more on

self-preservation than on mission. How does this happen? How

can we recognize when it does, and what can we do to keep from

falling into this trap?

108

WEDNESDAY

June 24

Personal Witness

It is not so difficult to agree with the statement that the church must

be mission-minded. But who is the church? The church is not primar-

ily an organization; rather, it is individuals who are, without any

exception, called to be witnesses.

Why

should we be confident that we can be witnesses of our faith?

1 Cor. 12:28, Eph. 4:11–15.

Not all of us have the gift of preaching or teaching. But we all have

been gifted in some way so that we can be what we are called to be—dis-

ciples always prepared to talk about the hope that is ours (1 Pet. 3:15).

What

is the ultimate resource for those who are willing to witness of

their faith? John 14:26; Acts 1:4, 8; 2:1–4.

The fact that Christ has promised the presence of the Holy Spirit to

His followers and that we can receive spiritual gifts does not mean that

it is not necessary to make any preparations or to undergo any train-

ing. The apostles were disciples who for more than three years under-

went the most intensive training possible. Likewise, disciples today

must be intentional about receiving training for Christian witness, and

the church must make it a priority to constantly prepare relevant train-

ing materials and opportunities to equip the members for their task.

But training alone will prove insufficient. God’s people today need the

presence and endowment of the Holy Spirit if they want to be suc-

cessful in their outreach to others.

One simple truth, however, will always remain: You cannot give what

you do not have. Unless we make sure that we have a living relation-

ship with God, we cannot hope to lead others to that same experience.

What

is a vital condition for all who want to be witnesses of their

faith? 2 Pet. 3:18.

A church that responds to its calling will be a growing church. But

growth should not be limited to numerical growth. Individually and

corporately we must be “growing in grace” if our witnessing truly is

to be productive.

What’s your understanding of w

hat it means to grow in grace?

How can you tell if you are? What criteria do you use? Share

your answers in class on Sabbath.

109

THURSDAY

June 25

Sharing the Lord

There is no doubt that sharing the message of the crucified and

risen Christ, who is now our Intercessor with His Father, also implies

a faithful teaching of the important doctrinal truths that God has

revealed in His Word.

How

important is it to teach and adhere to sound doctrine? Titus 2:1,

2 Pet. 2:1–3.

If we want to believe in the God of the Bible and have decided to

follow Christ, we will want to know as much as we can about Him,

about His character, and about what He expects from us. We try to

summarize what we learn in the Bible in a series of doctrines and

teachings. To some people, doctrinal statements are no more than

irrelevant mental baggage. That is a tragic misunderstanding. Without

sound doctrines our faith soon will become unfocused and shallow.

Rather than growing in our faith, we eventually will discover that our

faith becomes less and less meaningful. Unsound doctrines often will

point us away from Christ, to ourselves or to something else that sup-

posedly can contribute to our salvation. When we fail to ground our

faith in sound biblical teaching, we are in grave danger of straying

from the center of our faith: Jesus Christ our Lord.

What

is to be the centerpiece of all our preaching and witnessing?

1 Cor. 1:23, 2:2.

The stress on the importance of sound doctrine must be comple-

mented with the unconditional determination to anchor all we say in

Jesus Christ. Everything we believe and state as doctrine must be

related to the One in whom we are assured of our eternal salvation. If

there is no connection with Jesus Christ, a doctrine will be no more

than a piece of technical information, which may be interesting and

intellectually challenging, but nothing more. But if rooted in Jesus

Christ, a doctrine will help us better understand the plan of redemp-

tion and will enhance our relationship with our Lord.

Think about some of the false teachings that exist in the

Christian w

orld: eternal torment in hell, the predestination of

some people to be saved and others to be lost, the belief that

Jesus Christ was not divine but merely a great man. How could

these and other false teachings negatively impact our under-

standing of God and the plan of salvation?

110

FRIDAY

June 26

Further Study:

For various aspects of the mission challenge for

Seventh-day Adventists, individually and corporately, see Jon L.

Dybdahl, ed., Adventist Mission in the 21st Century (Hagerstown,

Md.: Review and Herald

Publishing Association, 1999). See also

Ellen G. White, “God’s Purpose for His Church,” in The Acts of the

Apostles, pp. 9–16.

“The church is God’s appointed agency for the salvation of men. It

was organized for service, and its mission is to carry the gospel to the

world. From the beginning it has been God’s plan that through His

church shall be reflected to the world His fullness and His sufficiency.

The members of the church, those whom He has called out of darkness

into His marvelous light, are to show forth His glory. The church is the

repository of the riches of the grace of Christ; and through the church

will eventually be made manifest, even to ‘the principalities and pow-

ers in heavenly places,’ the final and full display of the love of God.

Ephesians 3:10.”—Ellen G. White, The Acts of the Apostles, p. 9.

Discussion Questions:

● As a class, talk over your answer to the final question on

Wednesday. What are the different perspectives of what it means

to grow in grace?

● Take a good look at your local church. Where is the main

emphasis? Is it on the church itself and ministering to the needs

of the congregation itself, or is it on mission and on witnessing?

How do we strike the right balance; that is, how do we disciple

those who have joined us, while at the same time not neglect the

call to reach all people? Where does your church stand on this

topic, and in what ways can you help the church improve where

it needs to?

● How do we as a church protect ourselves from many of the

dangerous theological trends that constantly are seeking to infil-

trate and pollute our teachings? At the same time, how do we

remain open to growing and advancing in new light that can help

us better understand our Lord and our mission?

Summary: The gospel of Jesus Christ must be preached in all the world.

This is the responsibility of all who call themselves disciples. All of

us have received certain relevant gifts, and all of us have the promise

of the Spirit to further equip us. The preaching of the gospel should be

based on sound doctrine, but everything we proclaim must be rooted

in the One whom the gospel is all about.

INSIDE

111

Determined to Serve

by SETH A. LARYEA

Nyuma stopped shoveling gravel and straightened his back before he

answered the question I’d just asked. “I work hard and press forward in

spite of difficult circumstances, for I want to fulfill God’s purpose in my

life and serve Him.” And Nyuma is doing that. In spite of financial hard-

ships, he presses toward his goal of completing his education at Valley

View University in Ghana.

This day Nyuma is working at the construction site of the new church

on the university campus. The church, a recipient of a Thirteenth Sabbath

Offering, will seat 2,500 worshipers and be the center of the university

campus. Nyuma works to see the church finished as well as to make his

personal dream of an education a reality.

Nyuma grew up in Sierra Leone. He and his friends walked 12 kilome-

ters (7.5 miles) to school and back every day. When he completed primary

school, his guardian sent him to work on the farm instead of continuing

his studies. When his father learned that Nyuma was not studying, he took

the boy to a secondary school in another part of the country.

There Nyuma learned about Seventh-day Adventists and eventually was

baptized. His life took on a new direction, and he realized that God was

calling him to become a pastor. He continued studying until his father

retired. Then Nyuma had no money to continue his studies. He found work

doing menial jobs to raise money to continue his studies and finally com-

pleted his secondary education when he was 21 years old.

Then the country was thrown into a bitter civil war in which thousands

were maimed or murdered. “But God saved me to serve Him,” Nyuma

said. For the next six years he worked as a lay evangelist in Sierra Leone.

At last he made his way to Valley View University in Ghana to study

theology. He completed two years of study before he was forced to leave

classes to earn money to complete his education. But Nyuma does not

waste time feeling sorry that he cannot study. He offered to work on the

church construction team, which is hard work, for he is determined to

move toward his calling to be a minister. “Through these difficulties,” he

says, “God is strengthening me for His service.”

Nyuma’s determination encourages others to achieve their goals too. He

will make a good minister in his Master’s service.

Your mission offerings support schools at all levels in nearly two hun-

dred countries. And your Thirteenth Sabbath Offerings make possible

projects such as the church at Valley View University. Thank you.

SETH A. LARYEA is president of Valley View University near Accra, Ghana. Nyuma

Kondorfili Mustapha continues his ministerial studies at the university.

Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission.

Web site: www.adventistmission.org

tor

2009

112

Bible Study Guide for the Third Quarter

This quarter, instead of studying John’s Gospel (his own inspired

eyewitness account of Jesus) or the book of Revelation (which he

also wrote), we’re going to study his three letters. Though

addressed to certain churches and individuals in his time, they deal

with issues relevant to us today, issues such as false doctrine, sin,

love, apostasy, and obedience. But most important of all, they deal

with Jesus Christ, the One through whom we were created (“How

did we get here?”), the One who gives our existence meaning and

purpose (“Why are we here?”) and the One who promises to come

again and raise us to eternal life (“Where are we going?”). In short,

in Jesus we find the answers to the most important questions.

Lesson 1

—Jesus and the Johannine Letters

The Week at a Glance:

SUNDAY: From Whom and to Whom—Author and Recipients

(1 John 1:1–3; 3 John 1, 13, 14)

MONDAY: What—The Content of the Epistles (2 John 1–13)

TUESDAY: Why—The Purpose of Writing These Letters (1 John

1:4, 2:12–14)

WEDNESDAY: Jesus in the Johannine Epistles (1 John 1:1, 2:1,

5:20)

THURSDAY: Jesus’ Ministry in John’s Epistles (1 John 1:7)

Memory Text—

1 John 4:14

Sabbath Gem:

John’s Epistles focus on problems in the early

Christian church but also point to God the Father and the Son and

portray who They are and what They have done for us. When we

ponder these truths, we need to consider what our response must be.

Lesson 2

—Experiencing the Word of Life

The Week at a Glance:

SUNDAY: The Introduction to John’s First Letter (1 John 1:1–4)

MONDAY: First John 1 and John 1 (1 John 1:1–5, John 1:1–5)

TUESDAY: The Word of Life (1 John 1:1, 2)

WEDNESDAY: Eyewitnesses (1 John 1:1–4)

THURSDAY: Fellowship of the Saints (1 John 1:3)

Memory Text—

1 John 1:3

Sabbath Gem:

Just as eyewitness accounts are taken seriously

in a court of law, we should realize the power behind John’s account,

which is based on his personal experience with Jesus, and be willing

to witness as to how Christ is working in our lives.

Lessons for the Visually Impaired

The regular Adult Sabbath School

Bible Study Guide is available free each month in braille and on audiocassette to

sight-impaired and physically handicapped persons who cannot read normal ink

int. This includes individuals who, because of arthritis, multiple sclerosis, paralysis,

accident, and so forth, cannot hold or focus on normal ink-print publications. Contact

Christian Record Services, Box 6097, Lincoln, NE 68506-0097.